Vitznau-Rigi Railway

Electric railcars from 1937 above Rigi-Staffel

Timetable field :

603

Route length:

6.975 km

Gauge :

1435 mm ( standard gauge )

Power system :

1500 V =

Maximum slope :

250 ‰

Minimum radius :

60 m

Rack system :

Riggenbach

Dual track :

Freibergen – Rigi Kaltbad-First

Steam trains on the double lane below at Rigi-Kaltbad

Vitznau – Rigi Kulm

Legend

0.0	Vitznau	435 m above sea level M.
	Submerged
1.2	Mittlerschwanden	685 m above sea level M.
	Oberschwanden
	Schwandentunnel 67 m
	Tunnelhüttli
	Schnurtobel Bridge 80 m
2.1	Grubisbalm	910 m above sea level M.
2.6	Freibergen	1026 m above sea level M.
3.4	Romiti rock gate	1195 m above sea level M.
4.5	Rigi Kaltbad-First	1453 m above sea level M.
5.0	Rigi Staffelhöhe	1550 m above sea level M.
	Arth-Rigi-Bahn from Arth-Goldau
5.9	Rigi Staffel	1603 m above sea level M.
6.8	Rigi Kulm	1752 m above sea level M.

The Vitznau-Rigi Railway ( VRB ), and 1969 Rigibahn is a Swiss standard gauge - cog railway which of Vitznau to the Rigi leads. Together with the Arth-Rigi-Bahn (ARB), which runs on the other side of the mountain, and the Weggis – Rigi Kaltbad aerial cableway (LWRK) coming from Weggis , it has formed the Rigi-Bahnen Aktiengesellschaft (RB) since 1992 .

history

Share for more than 500 francs in the Rigibahn company on December 31, 1889

The Vitznau-Rigi-Bahn (VRB) was opened on May 21, 1871 under the name Rigibahn as the first mountain railway in Europe. The first cog railway in Europe started operating in the Ostermundigen quarry as early as 1870. For marketing reasons, the quarry railway was not officially opened until October 1871. The Vitznau-Rigi-Bahn was built by the engineers Niklaus Riggenbach , Ferdinand Adolf Naeff and Olivier Zschokke . At first it "only" led from Vitznau ( 439 m above sea level ) via Kaltbad ( 1453 m above sea level ) to the Rigi Staffelhöhe ( 1550 m above sea level ). On June 27, 1873, the railway was extended to Rigi Kulm ( 1752 m above sea level ). This section lies in the area of the canton of Schwyz, for which the VRB does not have a license. The line belongs to the ARB and was leased from the Vitznau-Rigi-Bahn. The line is mostly single-track; From the Freibergen request stop to Rigi Kaltbad-First, however, the line has been double-tracked since 1874.

In the first few years, the Rigibahn was only in operation in summer. After winter sports gradually developed, winter operations began.

The narrow-gauge Rigi-Kaltbad-Scheidegg Railway (RSB) to Rigi Scheidegg, completed in 1875, began in Kaltbad . In 1931 this line was shut down and finally canceled in 1942. The Weggis – Rigi Kaltbad (LWRK) aerial cableway , which comes from Weggis and is also operated by Rigi-Bahnen AG, has also ended in Kaltbad since 1968 .

Rigi season the tracks of the combine (since January 1, 1970 officially called) Vitznau-Rigi Railway and - since 1875 from Arth-Goldau - trains running Arth-Rigi Railway . The VRB uses the parallel line of the ARB to the common terminus Rigi Kulm. Both railways were once strictly separate and competitors. The transfer table in front of the shared depot building on Rigi Kulm served as the only connection. It was not until 1990 that a track connection between ARB and VRB was established in Rigi Staffel. This was the beginning of the merger, which was completed in 1992 and also includes the Weggis – Rigi Kaltbad aerial cableway (LWRK).

In 1937, the VRB to electric traction by, and the distance Vitznau - Rigi Kulm received a catenary ( overhead line ). In 1959 the transfer table in Freibergen was replaced, in 1961 the one in Kaltbad with a rack and pinion turnout, which was replaced by flexible turnouts in 2000 and 2012 respectively. In 2012 the railway station in Kaltbad was completely renewed and expanded to two tracks. The Kaltbad station building was demolished, construction began in May 2014, the shell was completed in September 2014 and the new Kaltbad station building was inaugurated on March 1, 2015.

Technical specifications

The railway has the following technical data:

Steam locomotive in Rigi-Kaltbad

VRB shortly after Vitznau

Vitznau Rigi-Bahn switch in Kaltbad, condition before 2012

Rack-and-pinion steam locomotive system Riggenbach, Vitznau Rigi Bahn

Electrical operation

Introduction of electrical operation	October 3, 1937
Systems for electrical operation:	3 rectifier stations
Supply:	Three-phase current 15 kV / 50 Hz
Traction energy:	1500 V direct current
Rectifier station performance	4000 kW

speed

Steam locomotives	9 km / h
Electric traction vehicles ascent	18/23 km / h
Electric traction vehicles downhill	12/14 km / h
Travel time Vitznau – Rigi Kulm	30 minutes
capacity	approx. 850 people / h

The turntable of the valley station, which is located in a curve, is a rarity.

Rolling stock

The only electric locomotive, number 18

H 1/2 with standing kettle from the pioneering days

Freight train in Rigi-Kaltbad to transport the large sweeper

1 electric locomotive 331 kW (No. 18)
4 electric motor vehicles 330 kW (No. 1–4)
1 electric motor vehicle 752 kW (No. 5)
2 electric pendulum compositions 824 kW (No. 21–22)
1 snow blower 309 kW (not self-propelled)
2 steam locomotives 340 kW (No. 16-17)
9 passenger cars
13 freight wagons, company vehicles, snow plows, etc.

literature

J (ohann) H (einrich) Kronauer, Bn .: book show. The Rigi Railway with cogwheel operation. In: Allgemeine Bauzeitung , year 1871, XXXVI. Volume, pp. 423-426. (Online at ANNO ). Template: ANNO / Maintenance / abz.
J. Theiler: Some remarks about the Riggenbach railway system in its application. In: Allgemeine Bauzeitung , year 1872, XXXVII. Volume, p. 386 ff. (Online at ANNO ). Template: ANNO / Maintenance / abz.
Florian Inäbnit: Rigi-Bahnen. Vitznau – Rigi cog railway . Prellbock Druck & Verlag, Leissigen 2002, ISBN 3-907579-19-4 .

Web links

Commons : Vitznau-Rigi-Bahn - collection of images, videos and audio files

Commons : Bahnstation Vitznau - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Rigi-Bahnen AG

Individual evidence

^ Kilian T. Elsasser: Restoration of the cogwheel steam locomotive Gnom in the Swiss Museum of Transport, January 2000 to March 2002 . In: Swiss Society for History of Technology and Industrial Heritage (eds.): IN.KU . No. 32 / October 2000, ZDB -ID 1446048-8 . Verlag der Gesellschaft, Winterthur 2000, pp. 1-4 (unpaginated). - Online (PDF; 170 KB) , accessed January 31, 2014.
↑ Communications. (...) Electrification of the Vitznau – Rigi Railway . In: C (arl) Jegher (Hrsg.): Schweizerische Bauzeitung . June 5, 1937, Volume 109, No. 23, ISSN 0036-7524 , p. 279. - Digitized .
↑ Europe's first mountain railway. Technical data cog railway from Vitznau . on the Rigi-Bahnen AG website, archive version from April 9, 2016

Remarks

↑ The frequently cited date of June 23, 1873 contradicts the fact that the Federal Council did not authorize the railway company's board of directors to hand over the section to public service until its meeting on June 25, 1873. - See: daily courrier. (...) About the location. (...) Confederation. Federal Council negotiations . In: Intelligence Gazette for the City of Bern , June 26, 1873, supplement, p. 5 middle.

47.009722222222 8.4830555555556Coordinates: 47 ° 0 ′ 35 " N , 8 ° 28 ′ 59" E ; CH1903: six hundred seventy-nine thousand four hundred and nineteen / 207047

[1] Kilian T. Elsasser: Restoration of the cogwheel steam locomotive Gnom in the Swiss Museum of Transport, January 2000 to March 2002 . In: Swiss Society for History of Technology and Industrial Heritage (eds.): IN.KU . No. 32 / October 2000, ZDB -ID 1446048-8 . Verlag der Gesellschaft, Winterthur 2000, pp. 1-4 (unpaginated). - Online (PDF; 170 KB) , accessed January 31, 2014.

[2] Communications. (...) Electrification of the Vitznau – Rigi Railway . In: C (arl) Jegher (Hrsg.): Schweizerische Bauzeitung . June 5, 1937, Volume 109, No. 23, ISSN 0036-7524 , p. 279. - Digitized .

[4] Europe's first mountain railway. Technical data cog railway from Vitznau . on the Rigi-Bahnen AG website, archive version from April 9, 2016

[3] The frequently cited date of June 23, 1873 contradicts the fact that the Federal Council did not authorize the railway company's board of directors to hand over the section to public service until its meeting on June 25, 1873. - See: daily courrier. (...) About the location. (...) Confederation. Federal Council negotiations . In: Intelligence Gazette for the City of Bern , June 26, 1873, supplement, p. 5 middle.