St. Pölten tram

St. Pölten tram
Route length:	9.42 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system :	800 volts  =
Maximum slope :	25.61  ‰
Minimum radius :	100 m
Top speed:	35 km / h
Legend 0.492 End of the route 0.456 Brunngasse (until 1951) Post office connection 0.292 Bahnhofplatz (until 1951) Western Railway End of the route 0.221 Goldegger Strasse (from 1951) 0.000 0.000 Handover of ÖBB (until 1945) Freight station (until 1945) 1,051 0.000 1.061 Kremser Landstrasse 1,348 Mühlweg (until September 30, 1917) 1,450 Slaughterhouse (until January 1, 1912) 1.463 0.000 Remise 0.459 Connection to the slaughterhouse & ice cream factory 0.497 Glossstoff Factory ( Dodge ) 0.660 Connection of the Glanzstoff factory 0.784 Connection of the Glanzstoff factory 0.805 Glanzstoff factory 0.883 Connection with Whitehead (until 1945) Handover of ÖBB (from 1945) 1.585 Daniel-Gran-Strasse Western Railway 1,780 Eybnerstrasse 1,843 Viehofner Strasse (until January 1, 1912) 2.170 New building space Traisenbrücke Wienerstraße 2.572 Ober-Wagram (until 1912) 2.745 Zwetzbacher Mühle (until October 7, 1953) 3,000 Ober-Wagram 3.057 Connection to NEWAG 3.325 Salzerstrasse 3.355 Working alley 3,995 Salzer paper mill (until 1929: Elbemühl ) 4.066 Connection of the Salzer wood pulp factory 4.069 Connection to the Salzer wood storage area 4,295 Sillinghof (until September 30, 1917) 4,950 Fialastrasse 5.161 Connection to the Salcher thread factory 5.205 Stattersdorf 6.075 Aufeld 6.317 Taxiway West Autobahn (900 mm) 6,990 Spatter 7.295 Well 7.556 Connection to the Harlander twisting factory 7,650 Salcherstrasse No. 9 7,893 Harland 8.045 End of the route

The former tram route at the entrance to. St. Polten

The St. Pölten tram was the tram system of the Lower Austrian capital St. Pölten , it was standard gauge and existed from 1911 to 1976. The operating company was called St. Pöltner Straßenbahn Aktiengesellschaft (St.P.St.B.), the planning of the railway goes back to 1905. Originally, the focus was on freight transport , but passenger transport developed significantly more strongly. Mainly the factories like Harlander Coats and Glanzstoff Austria , which had siding , were involved in the company. The railway had the character of an overland tram and connected St. Pölten with the originally independent towns of Wagram , Stattersdorf , Aufeld, Spratzern and Harland .

history

In 1905 the St.P.St.B. established and an on concession granted. In addition to the city of St. Pölten, shareholders were some industrialists from the city, and together a capital of 100,000 crowns was raised. After the constituent meeting on April 2, 1910, the license required for construction and operation was granted on May 1. A short time later, construction of the tram began. The railway was officially opened on March 18, 1911. In May of the same year the joint-stock company, which had only served for building purposes, was dissolved and a new one was founded under the same name; the share capital was 1,137,000 crowns. The administrative board consisted of Hermann Ofner (city councilor and chairman of the construction section of the city of St. Pölten), Johann Urban (director of the first Austrian glossy fabric factory ), Josef Salcher junior (director of the public limited company of the Harland cotton spinning and twisting factory ), Karl Salzer (partner of the Matthäus Salzers sons ), Josef Benker ( soap maker Benker ), the Viennese lawyer Wilhelm Graf and the building authority director of the city of St. Pölten, Josef Prokop.

In addition to the main line, numerous industrial connections were built, so the tram also fulfilled the function of an industrial connecting railway . Initially, three railcars for passenger transport and two locomotives for freight transport were procured from the Grazer Waggonfabrik for their operation . In addition, the G1 (boxcar) and JnG2 (low side car) were owned by St.P.St.B. until the beginning of the First World War. An extension from Bahnhofplatz to Brunngasse, which only served passenger traffic, was put into operation on December 12, 1912. The tram was designed as a single track. There were evasions at the Salzer and Eybnerstrasse paper mill stations, and the Brunngasse and Harland terminals each had a transfer track. While grooved rails of form 160/120 were laid in Brunngasse, grooved rails of type 180 / 150a were used in the rest of the city. Between the stations of Ober-Wagram and Salzerstraße there was a change to Vignol rails of the form XXIVa, from there the railway had its own route away from the streets.

The main source of income for the St. Pölten tram was initially goods traffic, passenger traffic initially only played a subordinate role. By connecting the city center, it was possible to increase the frequency of passenger traffic, which is why additional sidecars had to be purchased.

In 1914 the St. Pölten tram acquired the only post railcar built in Austria , which was added to the inventory as number 4. Until the post and parcel transport by rail was discontinued in 1932, this vehicle regularly brought mail and parcels to Harland.

After the so-called connection of Austria in 1938, the St. Pölten tram was also operated in accordance with the German tram construction and operating regulations (BOStrab). In this context, it was assigned the line letters H for courses towards Harland and P for courses towards (St.) Pölten, analogous to F for the Florianerbahn , G for Gmunden and Y for Ybbs . These were written on the vehicles in white letters on a black background, the signals could be illuminated in the dark.

On April 1 and April 2, 1945, the five-track transfer system at the freight station was destroyed by an air raid. On April 12, 1945, large parts of the depot, workshop, catenary system, rectifier system and vehicles were severely damaged by further bomb hits, so that traffic had to be shut down. Operations could already be resumed on July 2, 1945.

The route ran from Brunngasse to Harland until 1951, after which the route was shortened and from then on ended at the new terminus at Goldegger Strasse. The reason for the relocation on May 28, 1951 was the increasing individual traffic . From then on, the tram was no longer connected to the city center, which resulted in a sharp drop in frequency. The number of goods transported also fell sharply.

After the end of the sidecar operation, if the "large" railcar 5 failed, mostly two small railcars with pendulum conductors had to be used in the traffic peaks. Another large railcar was therefore procured. For lack of money, however, only a used vehicle was considered. Therefore, on September 1, 1963, the Vienna auxiliary power car NL 6212, formerly a type N power train built in 1925 , which originally ran under the number 2703 on the Wiener Elektrische Stadtbahn , was procured and, after minor adaptation work, was given the number on December 30, 1963 006 used in passenger operation. The failures of the railcar (especially the compressed air brake, which was not in use in St. Pölten up to then) increased and so the railcar was parked after a compressor damage on January 17, 1973 and handed over to Vienna for museum preservation in November 1974.

In 1974 the management decided to buy two used T1 multiple units (No. 404 and 407) from the Vienna tram . After minor modifications, the T1 404 was used as railcar 7 in St. Pölten from September 1, 1975 and was very popular with both staff and passengers. In the summer of 1975, the small railcar 2 was parked and sold because of its poor condition. In October 1975, railcar 5 also had to be parked.

On February 10, 1976, the tram was shut down due to an unpaid electricity bill. Negotiations about a takeover by the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) or the state of Lower Austria failed, so that the company had to file for bankruptcy.

However, the connection to the Glanzstoff factory was served with an ÖBB diesel locomotive or a Unimog until it was closed in 2008 . In addition, the Salzer paper mill received its freight wagons by road scooter a few years after the closure .

Reuse

Today, parts of the former route have been converted into the “Tramway Trasse” cycle path , the heritage-protected depot stands at the confluence of Daniel-Gran-Strasse and Herzogenburger Strasse and is now unused. Since 2004 the reintroduction of the streetcar in St. Pölten has been considered; a short-term realization seems unlikely.

• 

  Car 1 on the occasion of the opening in front of the Remise

• 

  Remise in 1971

• 

  Remise in 2014

• 

  Track remains in Herzogenburger Straße (2016)

• 

  Preserved post railcar No. 4 (2004)

• 

  Locomotive 2 on the Mariazell Museum Tramway (2015)

• 

  In 1939 the tram timetable was still listed in the Reich curriculum

vehicles

number	Construction year	Manufacturer	length	Wheelbase	Remarks
Locomotives
Locomotive 1	1911	Graz wagon factory	8500 mm	3200 mm	Freight locomotive, currently museum tramway Mariazell – Erlaufsee desolate
Locomotive 2	1911	Graz wagon factory	8500 mm	3200 mm	Freight locomotive, currently museum tramway Mariazell – Erlaufsee desolate
Locomotive 3	1930	Graz wagon factory	8500 mm	3200 mm	Freight locomotive, scrapped on September 25, 1976
Locomotive 4	1953	Gold ribbon	7640 mm	2800 mm	Freight locomotive
Railcar
1	1911	Graz wagon factory	7900 mm	2700 mm	Platform glazing, used on the last day of operation in 1976, currently Museum Tramway Mariazell – Erlaufsee, desolate
2	1911	Graz wagon factory	7900 mm	2700 mm	Platform glazing, July 29, 1975 Sale to private, currently Museum Tramway Mariazell – Erlaufsee, spare parts donor
3	1911	Graz wagon factory	7900 mm	2700 mm	Platform glazing, used on the last day of operation in 1976, currently the Mariazell – Erlaufsee museum tramway, reconstructed operationally
4th	1914	Graz wagon factory	7700 mm	2700 mm	Post railcar, converted into sidecar in 1938, reconstructed operationally as Tw 4 in 2004, currently Museum Tramway Mariazell – Erlaufsee
5	1929	Graz wagon factory	10700 mm	3200 mm	Platform glazing, barrel roof, shut down since October 1975, currently museum tramway Mariazell – Erlaufsee, not operational
006	1925	Simmering	11600 mm	3600 mm	Taken over in 1963 by the Wiener Elektrische Stadtbahn (formerly NL 6212, formerly N 2703), parked in January 1973, currently the Mariazell – Erlaufsee museum tramway, under construction
7th	1954	Wages	11600 mm	3300 mm	In 1974, formerly T1 404 was taken over by the Vienna tram, used on the last day of operation in 1976, from 1977 as a two-motor vehicle 07 for the WLB, currently the Mariazell – Erlaufsee museum tramway, car body scrapped in 2010
sidecar
11	1901	Graz wagon factory	8700 mm	3000 mm	Platform glazing, rebuilt in 1920
12	1891	Simmering	6080 mm	1600 mm	Taken over by the Vienna Tram in 1918, rebuilt in 1941
13	1905	Bremen tram	7800 mm	2200 mm	Bought by the Bremen tram in 1927 , retired in 1965
4th	1914	Self-made	7700	2700 mm	rebuilt from railcar 4, retired in 1975
Freight wagons
G1	1911	Ringhoffer	8540 mm	4000 mm
Jng2	1911	Ringhoffer	9020 mm	4000 mm
Railway service vehicles
Draisine	1943	Works Wörth	4960 mm	2200 mm	on trolley museum formerly ÖBB X613.005 Traismauer submitted
Tower sidecar	?	Self-made	?	?	Today the Mariazell – Erlaufsee museum tramway

All vehicles that have been preserved are now owned by the Mariazell-Erlaufsee Museum Tramway. Number 4 has largely been restored to its original state.

literature

• The St. Pölten – Harland electric tram. (Information from the Austrian Siemens-Schuckert-Werke). In:  Electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. Journal of the Electrotechnical Association in Vienna. Organ of the Association of Austrian and Hungarian Electricity Companies / Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. Journal of the Electrotechnical Association in Vienna (and organ of the branch association Brno) / E. u. M. (E and M) electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. Journal of the Electrotechnical Association in Vienna / E and M electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. Journal of the Electrotechnical Association in Vienna from 1883 to 1938 / E and M electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. Organ / journal of the Austrian Electrotechnical Association , year 1921, issue 22/1921, May 29, 1921, p. 89 f. (Online at ANNO ). .
• Wolfgang Kaiser: Trams in Austria . GeraMond, Munich 2004, ISBN 3-7654-7198-4 .
• Harald Marincig: The St. Pölten tram . Second, greatly expanded edition. Verlag Bahn im Film, Achau 2011, ISBN 978-3-9503096-0-7 .
• Harald Marincig: The St. Pölten tram . Electronic resource: 1 DVD-R (55 min.), 12 cm. Bahn im Film, Vienna 2011.
• Karl Zwirchmayer: 50 years of the St. Pölten tram - 1911–1961 . In: Eisenbahn 4/1961 , p. 61 f.

Web links

Commons : St. Pölten Tram  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Steve Stipsits: The city of St. Pölten (tram, bus, trolleybus, underground) . In: public-transport.at , November 5, 2012, accessed on February 12, 2013.
• Bernhard Graf (Ed., Red.): St. Pöltner Tram . In: tramways.at , accessed on February 12, 2013.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Gerhard A. Stadler: The industrial heritage of Lower Austria: history, technology, architecture . Böhlau, Wien (ua) 2006, ISBN 3-205-77460-4 , p. 639,  online .
2. ↑ ^{a b} Gerhard A. Stadler : The industrial heritage of Lower Austria , chapter St. Pölten municipality - tram depot . Böhlau, Vienna (among others) 2006, ISBN 3-20577460-4 .
3. ↑ RGBl. 1910/96. Announcement by the Ministry of Railways regarding the licensing of a standard-gauge small railroad from St. Pölten to Harland to be operated with electric power . In:  Reichsgesetzblatt for the kingdoms and states represented in the Reichsrathe , year 1910, p. 167. (Online at ANNO ). .
4. ↑ Company logs. (...) St. Pölten, St. Pölten Tram Company. In:  Wiener Zeitung , Official Journal , No. 144/1911, June 25, 1911, p. 749. (Online at ANNO ). .
5. ↑ Power off for St. Pölten's tram . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna February 11, 1976, p. 6 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
6. ^ The St. Pölten tram on Tramtrack Austria
7. ↑ Then and now: trams in St. Pölten and elsewhere on oekonews.ch