Naples – Portici railway line
| Naples Portici | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Opening trip of the Naples – Portici railway,
painting by Salvatore Fergola | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Route length: | 7.25 km | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gauge : | 1435 mm ( standard gauge ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Naples – Portici railway was the first in Italy .
The railway was single-tracked and built in standard gauge and opened on October 3, 1839 by King Ferdinand II . It was 7.25 kilometers long. The starting point in Naples was today's Corso Garibaldi, i.e. around the area of today's Naples Central Station . At the destination station Portici there was a royal residence at the foot of Mount Vesuvius . The line ran in the then still independent Kingdom of the Two Sicilies . It was built on the basis of a concession obtained from the French entrepreneur Armand Bayard de la Vingtrie . The concession allowed the construction of the railway to Nocera Inferiore on the Sorrento peninsula , a 35.8 kilometer stretch along the Gulf of Naples . Future extensions to Salerno and Avellino were envisaged as options. The extension to Castellammare di Stabia took place in 1842, to Nocera Inferiore in 1844.
The wrought iron rails were mounted on stone blocks that were dug into the ground. The track width was ensured by cross braces. The “modern” wooden sleeper had not yet been invented.
Three locomotives from Longridge from Newcastle upon Tyne were supplied as basic equipment, two of which were named Bayard and Vesuvio . They weighed 13 tons each, developed 65 hp and reached a top speed of 50 km / h. The cars were manufactured on site.
useful information
Today the line is part of the Naples – Salerno railway line . The National Railway Museum Pietrarsa is also located on the Naples – Portici railway line, directly at the Pietrarsa-S.Giorgio a Cremano stop . There are 1: 1 models of the first locomotive and the first railroad cars on display.
literature
- PM Kalla-Bishop: Italian Railways . Newton Abbott 1971.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Today's kilometers according to the railway atlas of Italy and Slovenia. Atlante ferroviario d'Italia e Slovenia . Schweers + Wall 2010, p. 153. ISBN 978-3-89494-129-1