Gland – Begnins

Gland – Begnins
Railcar No. 1 in Vich VD
Route length:	3.727 km
Gauge :	1000 mm ( meter gauge )
Maximum slope :	60  ‰
Minimum radius :	40 m
Top speed:	30 km / h
Operator:	Chemin de fer électrique Gland – Begnins
Opening:	June 13, 1906
Shutdown:	May 22, 1954
Legend from Lausanne Gland SBB to Geneva 0,000 Gland 415  m above sea level M. Goods shed depot 420  m above sea level M. 0.73 Gland Village 428  m above sea level M. 2.03 Vich 458  m above sea level M. 2.60 Moulin-du-Creux 3.05 Chemin de Martheray Remise 10,528 Begnins 541  m above sea level M.

The overland tram Gland – Begnins (GB) ( French Chemin de fer électrique Gland – Begnins ) was an electric tram in the Swiss canton of Vaud . The railway connected Gland on the north-west bank of Lake Geneva via Vich with Begnins . The 3.7 km long route was one of the shortest meter-gauge railways in public passenger transport in Switzerland.

history

Numerous trams and local railways were built on the shores of Lake Geneva after the main line of the Jura-Simplon Railway between Lausanne and Geneva went into operation in 1858 . The aim was to open up the villages at the foot of the Jura Mountains away from the bank by rail. For example the Nyon-Saint-Cergue-Morez-Bahn (NStCM), the Rolle-Gimel (RG) interurban tram, the Allaman-Aubonne-Gimel (AAG) interurban tram and the Bière-Apples-Morges-Bahn (BAM).

The Gland – Begnins electric tram opened on June 18, 1906. They linked the wine-growing village of Begnins with the Gland station on the SBB main line.

The meter-gauge route was mainly laid out on the country road. It began at Gland station on the main line and led through the village, then on a considerable incline over Vich up to the town of Begnins, where it ended after 3.7 kilometers in the middle of the village on the Place de l'Écu Vaudois. The line was electrified with direct current of 750 volts.

Although a modest freight transport was served, the train served more as a tram. It provided a connection to almost every SBB train. With the motorization after the Second World War , the renewal of the railway was no longer worthwhile, so that the railway was discontinued on May 23, 1954 and was replaced by a bus service .

Rolling stock

The railway had two railcars that were built by MAN in Augsburg and had electrical equipment from Rieter in Winterthur . There was also a trailer from ACMV from Vevey and two freight cars, also from MAN. The mail car came from the Schlieren wagon factory . After operations were stopped, all vehicles were canceled.

Motor car No. 1 in Gland

Type	Construction year	Manufacturer	Numbers	length	Weight	power	Places	Vehicle type
Ce 2/2	1906	MAN , Rieter	1 and 2	10.10 m	11 t	120 hp	24	Tram cars
C.	1892	ACMV	11	8.7 m	5 t		15th	Tram trailer
K	1906	MAN	3	5.8 m	5 t			Covered freight car
L.	1906	MAN	4th	5.8 m	4 t			Open freight car
Z	1912	SWS	21st	3.5 m	2 t			Mail car

literature

• Gustav Röhr, Hans Schweers and Henning Wall: Switzerland's narrow-gauge paradise . Volume 1, Aachen 1986, ISBN 3-921679-38-9
• Michel Grandguillaume, Jean Paillard, Jean-Louis Rochaix and Gérald Hadorn: Les Tramways vaudois . BVA (Bureau vaudois d'adresses), Lausanne 1979, ISBN 2-88125-001-7

Web links

Commons : Gland – Begnins  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Jürg Ehrbar: Chemin de fer électrique Gland-Begnins. In: discontinued railways in Switzerland. 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Les Chemins de fer suisses . In: Swiss Hotel Review . tape 18 , no. 35 , 1909.
2. ↑ Jürg Ehrbar
3. ↑ You ask - we answer . In: Railway amateur . No. 3 , 1956, pp. 88 .