Mountain railway explained

A mountain railway is a railway that operates in a mountainous region. It may operate through the mountains by following mountain valleys and tunneling beneath mountain passes, or it may climb a mountain to provide transport to and from the summit.

Mountain railways often use narrow gauge tracks to allow for tight curves in the track and reduce tunnel size and structure gauge, and hence construction cost and effort. Where mountain railways need to climb steep gradients, they may use steep grade railway technology, or even operate as funicular railways.

List of mountain railways

See also: list of rack railways.

Argentina

• Mendoza to Los Andes, Chile, see Chile below

Australia

• Glenreagh Mountain Railway
• Mt Morgan Rack Railway – abandoned in 1955.
• Skitube Alpine Railway
• West Coast Wilderness Railway

Austria

• Achensee Railway
• Arlberg Railway
• Mariazell Railway
• Pöstlingberg Railway^[1]
• Semmering Railway – A World Heritage Site
• Schafberg Railway
• Schneeberg Railway

Bolivia

• Ferrocarril de Antofagasta a Bolivia
• Ferrocarril de Arica a La Paz, Arica–La Paz
• Rio Mulatos-Potosí line

Brazil

• Corcovado Rack Railway
• São Paulo Railway

Canada

• BC Rail, crosses the Pacific Coast Range of the Coast Mountains (Garibaldi & Lillooet Ranges)
• Kicking Horse Pass
• Rogers Pass
• White Pass and Yukon Route
• Yellowhead Pass

Chile

• Ferrocarill Arica La Paz, Arica–La Paz
• Ferrocarril de Antofagasta a Bolivia
• El Ferrocarril Trasandino Los Andes – Mendoza, Los Andes – Mendoza. The rebuild will be adhesion only.^[2]

China

• Gebishi Railway
• Kunming–Hai Phong Railway
• Qingzang railway

Colombia

• Colombian Railways

Croatia

• Lika line
• Rijeka line

Eritrea

• Eritrean Railway

France

• Artouste (Petit train d')
• La Rhune (Petit train de)
• Mont Blanc Tramway
• Montenvers Railway
• Saint Gervais-Vallorcine (Ligne de)

Germany

• Drachenfels Railway (Drachenfelsbahn)
• Harz Railway (Harzbahn)
  • Rübeland Railway (Rübelandbahn)
  • Harz Narrow Gauge Railways (Harzer Schmalspurbahnen)
    • Harz Railway (Harzquerbahn)
    • Brocken Railway (Brockenbahn)
    • Selke Valley Railway(Selketalbahn)
• Murg Valley Railway (Murgtalbahn)
• Schwarza Valley Railway (Schwarzatalbahn)^[3]
• Wendelstein Railway (Wendelsteinbahn)
• Bavarian Zugspitze Railway (Bayerische Zugspitzbahn)

Georgia

• Borjomi-Bakuriani railway "Kukushka" (ბაკურიანი-ბორჯომი რკინიგზა)^[4]

Greece

• Diakofto Kalavrita Railway

Hong Kong

• Peak Tramways

India

See main article: Mountain railways of India.

• Darjeeling Himalayan Railway – A world Heritage Site
• Nilgiri Mountain Railway – A world Heritage Site
• Kalka-Shimla Railway – A world Heritage Site
• Kangra Valley Railway
• Matheran Hill Railway
• Jammu–Baramulla line

Isle of Man

• Snaefell Mountain Railway

Israel

• Carmelit

Italy

• Superga Rack Railway

Japan

• Hakone Tozan Railway
• Ikawa Line, Oigawa Railway
• Kurobe Gorge Railway

Mexico

• Ferrocarril de Córdoba a Huatusco

New Zealand

• Rimutaka Incline Commenced operation in 1878 and ceased operation in 1955.

Norway

• Flåmsbana

Peru

• Empresa nacional de ferrocarriles del Peru
• Ferrocarril Central Andino (Standard gauge)
• Ferrocarril Huancayo - Huancavelica,^[5] (built to narrow gauge, but converted to between 2006 and 2010^{[6] [7]})
• Ferrocarril del sur de Peru Arequipa – Puno, (Standard gauge)
• Cusco - Machu Picchu, Cusco – Machu Picchu (gauge)

Romania

• Ploiești – Brașov railway
• Brașov – Sibiu – Arad railway
• Râmnicu Vâlcea – Sibiu railway
• Târgu Jiu – Simeria railway
• Drobeta-Turnu Severin – Caransebeș railway
• Oraviţa – Anina railway
• Cluj-Napoca – Oradea railway
• Brașov – Miercurea Ciuc – Deda railway, and Brașov – Întorsura Buzăului
• Salva – Sighetul Marmatiei railway
• Adjud – Siculeni railway
• Suceava – Ilva Mică railway, and Vama – Moldovita
• Arad – Ineu – Brad
• Buzău – Nehoiașu.

Russia

• Apsheronsk narrow-gauge railway – located in the Krasnodar Krai, gauge of .^{[8] [9]}

Slovakia

• Čierny Hron Railway

Slovenia

Bohinj railway

Spain

• Montserrat Rack Railway
• Vall de Núria Rack Railway

Switzerland

See main article: List of mountain railways in Switzerland.

• Appenzeller Bahnen
• Bergbahn Lauterbrunnen-Mürren
  • Bergbahn Rheineck-Walzenhausen Lötschberg railway line
• Berner Oberland Bahn
• Brienz Rothorn Bahn
  • • • • • Chemin de fer Aigle-Leysin Chemin de fer Aigle-Ollon-Monthey-Champéry Chemin de fer Aigle-Sépey-Diablerets Chemin de fer Bex-Villars-Bretaye Chemins de fer electriques Veveysans Chemin de fer Montreux-Glion-Rochers-de-Naye
• Chemin de fer Nyon-St-Cergue-Morez
• Emmental-Burgdorf-Thun-Bahn
• Gornergratbahn
• Gotthardbahn
• Jungfraubahn
• Harderbahn
• Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (formerly BVZ Zermatt-Bahn, Furka Oberalp Bahn)^[10]
• Monte Generoso Railway
• Montreux–Lenk im Simmental line
• Pilatusbahn
• Rhätische Bahn
• Rigi Bahnen (Arth-Rigi-Bahn, Vitznau-Rigi-Bahn)
• Rorschach-Heiden-Bahn
• Schynige Platte Bahn
• Transports de Martigny et Régions (Chemin de fer Martigny–Châtelard and Chemin de fer Martigny–Orsières)
• Trogenerbahn
• Uetlibergbahn
• Wädenswil-Einsiedeln-Bahn
• Wengernalpbahn
• Waldenburgerbahn
• Zentralbahn (former Luzern-Stans-Engelberg-Bahn, Brünigbahn)

Taiwan

• Alishan Forest Railway

United Kingdom

• Brecon Mountain Railway
• Cairngorm Mountain Railway
• Conwy Valley line
• Ffestiniog Railway
• Highland Main Line
• Settle–Carlisle line
• Snowdon Mountain Railway
• Welsh Highland Railway
• West Highland Line

United States

• Alamogordo and Sacramento Mountain Railway
• Boca and Loyalton Railroad
• Carson and Tahoe Lumber and Fluming Company
• Cascade Tunnel
• Cass Scenic Railroad State Park
• Central Pacific Railroad
• Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
• Denver and Salt Lake Railway
• Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
• Feather River Route
• Georgetown Loop Railroad
• Gilpin Railroad
• Lookout Mountain Incline Railway in Chattanooga, Tennessee
• Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway
• Michigan-California Lumber Company
• Mount Lowe Railway
• Mount Tom Railroad
• Mount Washington Cog Railway
• Mountain Division
• Northwestern Pacific Railroad
• Otis Elevating Railway
• Raton Pass
• Rio Grande Southern Railroad
• San Diego and Arizona Railway
• Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad
• Silver City, Pinos Altos and Mogollon Railroad
• Silverton Railroad
• Tehachapi Loop
• Uintah Railway
• White Pass and Yukon Route

Venezuela

• Gran Ferrocarril de Venezuela

Vietnam

• Đà Lạt–Tháp Chàm Railway – Abandoned after the Vietnam War.

Mountain railways in fiction

The Culdee Fell Railway is featured in the book Mountain Engines, part of The Railway Series by Rev.W.Awdry.

See also

• Cable car (railway)
• Cable railway
• Funicular
• Hillclimbing (railway)
• List of steepest gradients on adhesion railways
• Rack railway
• Ruling gradient
• Stadler Rail (Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works)
• Steep grade railway

References

1. http://www.linzag.at/navigation/section,id,383,nodeid,383 Described by the operator, Linz AG Linien
2. http://www.seconstruye.com/webnoticia/asp/interior.asp?id=17067 Se construye
3. http://en.oberweissbacher-bergbahn.com/bergbahnland/attraktionen/schwarzatalbahn/ Schwarza valley line
4. Web site: Georgian Railway.
5. http://www.rrdc.com/images/map_fcca_new.gif Map of Huancayo – Huancavelica
6. Web site: Huancavelica upgrade . Railway Gazette International . 16 September 2019 . 1 Jun 2006.
7. Web site: El Tren Macho reanudó sus operaciones entre Huancayo y Huancavelica . El Comercio . 16 September 2019 . es . 5 Dec 2011.
8. http://www.internationalsteam.co.uk/trains/russia18.htm Apsheronsk railway
9. http://www.internationalsteam.co.uk/trains/russia19.htm Tourist Railway
10. Web site: Unsere Geschichte: Von der Visp-Zermatt-Bahn bis zur BVZ Holding AG . BVZ Holding AG . Brig, Switzerland . de, fr, en . 2017-07-03.

External links

• Homepage of the Matterhorn-Gotthard-Bahn
• Narrow gauge railways of Switzerland
• El Ferrocarril Trasandino Los Andes – Mendoza, Argentina (Trans-Andean Railways) (all others in Spanish only)
• seconstruye.com el tren Los Andes – Mendoza
• Museo Ferrocarril Transandino
• Ferrocarril Central Andina S.A.
• Ferrocarril Central Andino S.A.
• Map of central Peru Callao – Huancayo
• Map of south Peru/Bolivia Machu Picchu – Lake Titicaca – west coast Pacific Ocean
• Route Arequipa – Puno (Lake Titicaca)
• Route Cusco – Puno (Lake Titicaca)
• Route Cusco – Machu Picchu
• Homepage of the Mount Washington Cog Railway (First ever mountain climbing cog railway)