Biel-Meinisberg Railway

Route length:

6.8 km

Gauge :

1000 mm ( meter gauge )

Power system :

550 V =

Maximum slope :

41 ‰

Minimum radius :

60 m

Top speed:

45 km / h

Biel – Meinisberg

Legend

		TrB line 1 to Nidau
	0.0	Biel-Bahnhofplatz	437 m above sea level M.
		BTI to Ins
		Biel-Centralplatz
		TrB line 2 to Bözingen
		TrB line 3
		Biel-Neumarktplatz
		Biel-Gurzelen
	3.5 0.0	Mett bears	443 m above sea level M.

		Roller bolster system Biel Mett

	0.4	Mett Station-BMB	444 m above sea level M.
	1.5	Kraemersried	446 m above sea level M.
	2.1	Orpund Post	440 m above sea level M.
	2.8	Orpund station	436 m above sea level M.
	4.0	Safnern-West	439 m above sea level M.
	4.6	Safnern Station	441 m above sea level M.
	6.3	Meinisberg moss	447 m above sea level M.
	6.9	Meinisberg station	449 m above sea level M.
		Meinisbert depot
Property Tramway de Bienne (TrB)

The Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn (BMB) was a 6.8 kilometer long Swiss narrow-gauge railway from Biel via Biel-Mett to Meinisberg , which was operated from 1913 to 1923 and from 1926 to 1940.

history

CFm 2/4 No. 1 with a freight train

On December 29, 1913, the plant was opened, the route led by shared use of the tracks of the tram Biel from Biel station through the city center to Biel-Mett, from there on its own route to Meinisberg. The BMB started operations with two Liechty type steam railcars , the CFm 2/4 No. 1 and the slightly smaller CFm 2/4 No. 2 . The steam railcars traveling through the city were not particularly popular with the population because of the pollution caused by the smoke. Because of the strange green color scheme in the city, the railcars were given the nickname grassworm .

The larger steam railcar was better suited for passenger transport, so that the smaller railcar was mainly used for freight transport. This was done with a boxcar, an open wagon and three roller stools. The corresponding transfer system was located on the south side of the Biel-Mett train station. The trains ran from 1913 to 1923, after which operations were suspended for three years for financial reasons.

Ce 4/4 No. 1 orange arrow

On April 11, 1926, operations were resumed under the leadership of the Biel city tram with their vehicles as an electric overland tram . In 1936 the Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn took over the operation again, this under the acquisition of the new light railcar Ce 4/4 1 .

The replacement of the lines of the Biel / Bienne city tram by the Biel / Bienne trolleybus in 1940 meant the discontinuation of the Biel-Meinisberg railway on June 30, 1940, and bus operations continued. The light railcar was then used in the canton of Ticino on the Lugano-Cadro-Dino-Bahn (LCD) until this narrow-gauge railway was also discontinued.

An island operation on its own section from Biel-Mett to Meinisberg, or even the construction of a separate route to Biel's main train station, was not realistic. Likewise, a possible extension from Meinisberg to Büren an der Aare could never be realized during the entire operating period.

Former depot in Meinisberg, 2009

The route of the Biel – Meinisberg railway line can still be clearly seen today; the route is mostly used as a side street, cycle path or field path. The station buildings at that time in Orpund , Safnern and Meinisberg still exist and are used as a single-family home. The depot in Meinisberg, which was only used for the railway during the steam era, from 1913 to 1923, still exists. It is used by a local gymnastics club as a gym and clubhouse. The original character of all buildings has largely been preserved to this day.

Biel – Meinisberg bus service

The bus operation from Biel to Meinisberg by the Biel-Meinisberg bus company (BM, later ABM) was self-directed from 1940 to 2007. In 2007 the bus operation was integrated into the bus operation Grenchen und Umgebung (BGU). The bus company Grenchen und Umgebung (BGU) was renamed BGU Grenchen und Umgebung during the same period .

On the occasion of the timetable change in December 2009, there was another change of operator. The Aar Zealand mobile (ASM) took over the operation of the bus connections is now designated as a line 72 Biel-Meinisberg.

literature

Albert Ziegler: Bieler Strassenbahnen - Tramways of Biel Switzerland; City tram Biel, city transport company, Biel, Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn, Biel-Täuffelen-Ins-Bahn , Gut Vorhard, Verlag Eisenbahn, Villingen 1977, ISBN 3856490272
Konrad Kunz: From the «grassworm» to the «orange arrow» - history of the narrow-gauge railway Biel-Meinisberg BMB, 1913–1940 , Association for Home Care Büren, Büren a / A 2002

Web links

Commons : Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

↑ Jürg Ehrbar: Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn BMB. In: discontinued railways in Switzerland. Retrieved January 17, 2020 .
↑ Reference to Hornerblatt 2003. Association for Home Care Büren, accessed on January 24, 2020 .
↑ Jürg Ehrbar: Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn BMB. In: discontinued railways in Switzerland. Retrieved January 23, 2020 .
↑ Excerpt from the customer magazine "direct" ( memento of the original dated December 23, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. of Aare Seeland Mobil AG, winter edition 09/10 @1@ 2

[1] Jürg Ehrbar: Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn BMB. In: discontinued railways in Switzerland. Retrieved January 17, 2020 .

[:0-2] Reference to Hornerblatt 2003. Association for Home Care Büren, accessed on January 24, 2020 .

[3] Jürg Ehrbar: Biel-Meinisberg-Bahn BMB. In: discontinued railways in Switzerland. Retrieved January 23, 2020 .

[4] Excerpt from the customer magazine "direct" ( memento of the original dated December 23, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. of Aare Seeland Mobil AG, winter edition 09/10 @1@ 2