Ferrocarril de La Robla
The railway line called Ferrocarril de La Robla is the longest narrow-gauge railway in Europe with a total length of 330 kilometers, which was initially operated by a railway company of the same name.
Geographical location
The original railway line still exists today and begins in the Leonese community of La Robla . From there it runs straight through the Cantabrian Mountains past the Ebro reservoir to the Basque province of Bizkaia , where it joins the Basque-Asturian Railway (Ferrocarril Vasco-Asturiano) in Luchana , which runs from Bilbao via Santander to Oviedo . Both lines are now operated by the RENFE railway company. In Bilbao there is a connection to the also narrow-gauge network of Euskotren , which leads to beyond the French border.
history
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Management's two-axle saloon car in the Basque Railway Museum
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Salon car, interior view
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The railway was opened in the 19th century to connect various mines in the Cantabrian Mountains with heavy industry operations in the Basque Country . The original equipment for passenger cars was completely sourced from France, including a saloon car for the management. This has been preserved and is exhibited in the Basque Railway Museum , Azpeitia .
A branch line was later built in the province of León to connect the narrow-gauge railway to the provincial capital. Operation on the line was given up in the early 1990s due to technical defects. After massive protests, the route was renovated and reopened.
Passenger traffic takes place between León and Bilbao today, while the section between Matallana and La Robla only has freight traffic. Another branch line to Velilla del Río Carrión , built later, is also used exclusively by freight trains to supply a coal-fired power station there. In the Cantabrian Mountains, it is of great importance for remote communities that are often inaccessible by car in winter due to snowfall. In the area around the cities of Bilbao and León, the route is used for S-Bahn traffic.
future
The line is currently being electrified and urbanized between León and Villaquilambre to enable tram operation. In León there is also a new branch in the street for a second tram line under construction, which will lead to the city hospital. In the long term, a meter-gauge tram network of several lines operated by FEVE is to be built in León, in which the railway line is integrated. Rail traffic with conventional trains is to remain on the route, however.
In León, an independent standard-gauge tram network was initially planned, which in retrospect turned out to be too expensive. The implementation of a meter-gauge tram in which the existing railway line can also be used turned out to be a more cost-effective alternative.
literature
- El Ferrocarril de La Robla , Pedro Fernández Díaz-Sarabia, Historia de los Ferrocarriles de Vía Estrecha en España , Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles, Madrid, 2004. ISBN 84-88675-99-2
- El ferrocarril de la Robla , Javier Fernández López. Editorial Agualarga, 1997. ISBN 84-88959-77-X
- El ferrocarril de la Robla: Cien años del hullero, 1894-1994 , Arantza Garaikoetxea, SCD y R. Bilbao Hogar Leones. FEVE, Dirección de Comunicación, 1994. ISBN 84-88974-05-1
- La puchera encartada y el ferrocarril de La Robla , Ricardo Santamaría y Marta Zaldíbar. Salgai Editorial, Bilbao, 2004. ISBN 978-84-931494-9-9
- Viejo caballo de hierro. Un viaje en el ferrocarril de La Robla , Carlos Bacigalupe. Muelle de Uribitarte, Bilbao, 2004. ISBN 978-84-921998-6-0
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Labeling on the object in the Basque Railway Museum .
- ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from June 26, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
