Steffisburg – Thun – Interlaken tram

Steffisburg - Thun - Interlaken
Railcar Ce 2/2 13 with two high side cars at a quarry near Nastel, 1914
Timetable field :	43
Route length:	25,811 km
Gauge :	1000 mm ( meter gauge )
Power system :	1100 V  =
Maximum slope :	74  ‰
Minimum radius :	20 m
Top speed:	35 km / h
Legend 3.3 Steffisburg village 599  m above sea level M. Steffisburg Post Steffisburg Square Mühlebach Bridge Spar- und Leihkasse Glockenthal Glockenthal brewery 1.6 Glockenthal (turnout) 573  m above sea level M. Hornbergstrasse Hübeli Berntor Schwäbis depot Marktgasse Unterälliz Thun train station (until 1923) Post office building 0.0 Thun train station (from 1923) 560  m above sea level M. Sense bridge Thun-Lauitor ( pass from 1920) Hofstetten 1.1 Thun-Kursaal 564  m above sea level M. Bächimatte Nautical mat 2.4 Hünibach (Chartreuse) 572  m above sea level M. Eichbuehl Hünegg Seebühl Hilterfingen Hilterfingen Church Oberhofen -Ländte Oberhofen village 5.2 Oberhofen Rieder 575  m above sea level M. Length chutes Oertlibach Herzogenacker 8.2 Gunten 567  m above sea level M. Guntenmatt Stampbach Horny Merligen -Stöckli Merligen-Vorderdorf 11.5 Merligen-Ländte 568  m above sea level M. Merligen-Mätteli 13.4 Beatenbucht (connection TBB ) 568  m above sea level M. 14.4 Nastel 616  m above sea level M. 16.6 Beatus Caves 622  m above sea level M. 17.8 Sundlauenen 612  m above sea level M. Beatusbad 20.2 Neuhaus 566  m above sea level M. Schützenhaus-Unterseen 21.2 Unterseen -Widimatt 572  m above sea level M. Weissenaustrasse Scheidgasse 22.7 Interlaken train station 564  m above sea level M.

The Steffisburg – Thun – Interlaken tram was a tram operated in the Swiss canton of Bern and existed from 1914 to 1958. It comprised two routes starting from Thun , leading to Steffisburg and along the north shore of Lake Thun via Beatenbucht to Interlaken . The operator of the railway was the Electric Railway Steffisburg – Thun – Interlaken , from 1916 as the right bank Thunerseebahn, electric railway Steffisburg – Thun – Interlaken (STJ), today's transport company STI .

history

The southern, left bank of Lake Thun had been opened up via the Thunerseebahn since 1893 . The right bank on the sunny side was still served by paddle steamers that had been in service since 1835 . In order to improve traffic relations, some hoteliers decided to set up a bus route from Thun to Oberhofen . Established in 1905, the company lasted a good two months and had to be discontinued because of the immature technology. The next initiative was to build a tram. The village of Gunten (municipality of Sigriswil ) expressed its interest in a rail connection, so that the route should now be led to Beatenbucht. Since the interested parties did not have enough equity, a Zurich finance group expressed their interest in co-financing. Since she did not consider the connection to Beatenbucht to be interesting enough, she discussed the extension to Interlaken in order to connect the two important places with one another.

The license was granted on December 19, 1905. On 11./16. December 1911 constituted the STJ. The initial capital was 1.6 million francs (divided into 1,200 ordinary shares and 2,000 priority shares of 500 francs each), the railway construction was given a total of 3.2 million francs of securities with the help of an additional 3200 bonds of 500 francs each.

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  Ordinary share over CHF 500

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  Priority share over CHF 500

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  Obligation of CHF 500

Shortly afterwards, parts of the finance group left the project and individual experts on the board of directors resigned. The first problems arose during the subsequent distribution of orders, as hardly any company was willing to work at this price. The Kommandit AG J. E. Brüstlein & Cie. Was found, which received a lump sum of CHF 3.02 million for the entire construction, including buildings, electrification, furniture and vehicles. Furthermore, the canton of Bern demanded a right to use the road to be created. The precarious financial situation from the beginning dragged on for the entire service life of the railway. The originally planned extensions to Wilderswil and Gsteig were therefore never carried out.

Opening train with railcar Ce 2/2 7 in Thun, 1913

The construction of the railway went quickly at first, but completion was delayed several times due to various obstacles. Among other things, several telephone and power lines had to be removed and relocated for the construction. Given the limited financial scope, the line was built as cheaply as possible. For example, cross sleepers were dispensed with and the rails laid on a thin gravel base were held in place with tie rods. The rails were therefore quickly worn out and had to be repaired several times. On October 10, 1913, the first section Steffisburg - Thun - Oberhofen went into operation. The trains started at Thun station ; the first timetable provided for 64 trains daily to Steffisburg and 52 trains to Oberhofen. At Christmas 1913, the Oberhofen - Beatenbucht section was completed. The remaining section to Interlaken went into operation on June 20, 1914, preceded by several rock blasts in the complicated section.

With the outbreak of World War I and the mobilization of the Swiss army , the STJ's workforce fell drastically, so that the company was forced to thin out the timetable. Traffic between Beatenbucht and Interlaken has been completely stopped. In addition, many foreign tourists left the places. The STJ's financial situation led to further restrictions in 1915 and an increase in tariffs for goods and luggage. Passenger numbers fell by 75,000 to less than 500,000 in 1915. In 1916, the distribution of shares had to be reorganized in order to consolidate the financial situation. Since then the company name has been Rechtsufrige Thunerseebahn, electric train Steffisburg – Thun – Interlaken . Tram traffic to Interlaken was resumed in the same year and the Thun and Hünibach stations were expanded. A legal dispute with the construction company regarding a subsequent claim was also settled. The drivers received surcharges of 15 or 20 francs per month, the fares were increased by five to ten cents per ticket. During the war there were further tariff increases and timetable restrictions. The situation only gradually improved after the electrification of the Bern - Thun main line and the associated increase in passengers. From 1921 the Thun - Interlaken railway on the left bank of the lake was electrified. The year 1921 itself was very mixed for the STJ. The spread of the foot-and-mouth disease led to the cancellation of all market days, and the Beatenbergbahn ceased operations. Nevertheless, as a result of the shooting festival in Interlaken , the company recorded record numbers.

As a result of the relocation of the Thun train station , the track systems of the STJ also had to be built at the new location. The new station building went into operation on June 13, 1927 and was half used by the STJ and the BLS for their steamship docks. The old station building was rebuilt in Gunten. From 1923, the railway offered a 20-minute cycle between Thun and Gunten, which was later extended to Merligen. The STJ offered special sports tickets for skiers on the Beatenberg. From 1925, there were further line extensions, including at the Gunten and Beatushöhlen stations, and the substructure was improved in sections . The old rails with the Phönix / c profile with a weight of 35.5 kilograms per meter were replaced by the Bevat 51 profile with a weight of 42.8 kilograms; the replacement was also due to increasing traffic loads. The rectifier plant in Oberhofen was automated in 1929.

In 1930 there were first demands to convert the railway to other traction devices. As a result of the global economic crisis , passenger numbers fell by around 20 percent. Due to the decline in profits, the STJ was not able to modernize further route sections. The canton of Bern requested further renovations, the costs of which amounted to 1.75 million francs. The STJ therefore tried to persuade the neighboring communities to share the costs. Thun and Steffisburg granted the required loans, the other municipalities refused and asked the federal court to liquidate the railway. The number of passengers continued to decline in the course of the 1930s; in addition to the ongoing economic crisis, floods and bad weather were also decisive factors. On July 20, 1937, a downpour resulted in the road being interrupted several times by scree slopes; in Gunten the road bridge was broken down and replaced by an emergency bridge; rail traffic was interrupted for three days. The renewed spread of foot-and-mouth disease led to the cancellation of the market days in 1938 and a further drop in income. In 1939, the canton of Bern intended to expand the Beatenbucht - Interlaken road, provided the company was willing to upgrade its tracks for a fee of 80,000 francs. With a two-thirds majority, the general assembly of the STJ then decided to abandon the route section. This involved a change in the concession to Beatenbucht as the final stop and the establishment of a bus shuttle between Beatenbucht and Interlaken. On December 18, 1939, the STJ ceased operations between Beatenbucht and Interlaken, reducing the length of the route by 9,386 meters to 16,742 meters. The start of bus service was delayed until August 15, 1940, as the outbreak of World War II led to the confiscation of automobiles and fuel by the army. The rails were also partly taken over by the army or used to repair the remaining route.

Timetable in winter 1951/52

Despite the lack of tourism, the railway recorded record income during the war, as private automobile traffic almost completely came to a standstill and the army used the tram for its transports. In 1942 over a million passengers were transported for the first time, in 1944 almost 1,375 million passengers were counted. From April 1, 1944, the return tickets issued could be used either for the train or for the Thunersee shipping. From Christmas on, the STJ also raised a war-related surcharge of 10–20 percent on the fare, which was sent to a fund for distressed shipping and railroad companies. In 1945 the number of passengers rose unexpectedly to over 1.5 million, the wage-price spiral was thus strongly stimulated, as a result of which expenditure rose faster than income. As a result, track maintenance has been reduced to a minimum. A check carried out by the Federal Office of Transport in 1946 showed that large parts of the line would have to be modernized within two years, and the costs were estimated at CHF 200,000. The power supply was improved in 1947 with the construction of a new switching station in Oberhofen with a high-voltage connection and the laying of a high-voltage submarine cable to Spiez by the Bernese power plants.

See also : Trolleybus Thun – Beatenbucht

In 1948 the decision was made to convert the sea route to trolleybus operation; the route to Steffisburg was to remain in place until 1965. Expenditures of four million francs were planned for the conversion, of which the canton of Bern took over 1.6 million and the federal government took over 900,000 francs. The company and the municipalities contributed the remaining amount. Among other things, the construction of a new depot was planned. The maintenance of the line has been reduced to a minimum with a view to the imminent discontinuation. On August 18, 1952, the company switched operations between Thun and Beatenbucht from tram to trolleybus. The Thun - Steffisburg route was retained, however, as the substructure in this section was significantly better than on the sea route. On June 1, 1958, the three-kilometer remnant was converted to a bus . The station building at Thun train station was retained and is still used today by the STI transport company.

Vehicles and depot

Schwäbis depot, around 1913

At the opening, the Deutsche Bahn had 14  railcars (Ce 2/2 1–14), four closed sidecars (C 31–34) and summer  wagons ( C ² 51–54), two boxcars (K 71–72), two high side cars ( L 81–82) and two mail cars (FZ 91–92, from 1920 Z 91–92). A rail scraper - called "Chräbel" - and a snow plow that could be placed on it were also available to combat large amounts of snow . The railcars had closed entry platforms . Two summer cars (C 51–52) were locked as early as 1914. Also since 1914, the railway had two single-axle mail trailers (Z 111–112), from 1917 a four-axle explosive unit (Xe 2/4 101), and in 1918 a total of five low side cars were added by the Zurich city tram and self-construction (M 61– 65). Around this time, the motor cars Ce 2/2 2 and 5 were converted to trailer cars (C 21-22). In 1920 three (C 41–43) and in 1921 another five sidecars (BC 35–39, from 1940 C 35–39) were added. The BC 38 sidecar served as a provisional station building in Gunten until 1927 , before the old Thun station building was erected here. In 1923 the STJ had two low side cars converted, the M 64 became the X 102 tower car , the purpose of the X 103 ex M 65 is unclear. In 1928 the trailer cars C 21-22 were dismantled in railcars (Ce 2/2 2 ^II +5 ^II ). In the following year, the STJ had the summer cars C 53 and 54 converted into closed cars. From 1941 the C 51 sidecar was used in freight traffic as the K 73.

As a result of the closure of the lake line, several vehicles were dispensable from 1952. Six motor coaches and six sidecars each went to the Innsbrucker Verkehrsbetriebe , where they were to be used in the city ​​network with 600 volts DC voltage as well as on the Hallerbahn and the Mittelgebirgsbahn with 1200 volts DC voltage. The supervisory authorities forbade the operation because it did not appear to be safe due to the high voltage differences. Two railcars were taken over for the shunting service, two sidecars came to the Stubaitalbahn and were in use there until the 1960s. Three sidecars came to the Trogenerbahn , where they served as reserve vehicles. Individual vehicles from the freight and company cars were taken to various Swiss railway companies, the remaining vehicles were broken off or partly used for other purposes.

The passenger cars were all painted light yellow with cream-colored ribbon windows. The coupling was carried out with a trumpet coupling , the current was drawn using a lyra bracket , and from 1942/43 on using pantographs .

Vehicle overview STJ

Type	number	Construction year	Manufacturer	LüP (in m)	Dimensions	Seating	Whereabouts
Ce 2/2	1-14	1913	Credé / SSW	9.00	12	18th	1917 Ce 2/2 2 car body used for C 21; 1918-1928 Ce 2/2 5 as C 22; 1952 Ce 2/2 8 retired; 1953 Ce 2/2 3–4, 6, 10, 12, 14 to Innsbruck (4 = 62, 6 = 61); 1953 Ce 2/2 9, 11, 13 in Tw 4 II , 6 II , 3 II ; 1958 Ce 2/2 1, 3 II -4 II , 6 II , 7 retired
Ce 2/2	2 II , 5 II	1928 (renovation)	Credé / SSW	9.00	7th	18th	1928 ex C 21-22; Retired in 1958
C.	21-22	1917/18 (reconstruction)	Credé	9.00		18th	1917 C 21 ex Ce 2/2 2 (car body); 1918 C 22 ex Ce 2/2 5 1928 in Ce 2/2 2 II , 5 II
C.	31-34	1913	Credé	9.00	7th	24	1953 C 31-32, 34 to Innsbruck (32 = 162); 1958 C 33 retired
BC 2	35-39	1921	Credé	8.90	7th	24	1940 in genus C 2 ; 1953 C 37-39 in C 31 II -32 II , 34 II ; 1958 C 31 II -32 II , 34 II , 35 to TB C 86-89
C.	41-43	1920	SWS	8.80	5	24	1953 on TB C 83-85
C 2	51-54	1913	Credé	8.54	6th	24	Summer car ; 1914 C 51 and 52 closed; 1941 C 51 in K 73; 1953 C 52–54 to Innsbruck (52 = 161)
M.	61-64	1882	SIG	5.40	2	-	1918 ex StStZ C 416-417, 419-420; 1923 M 64 in X 102; 1952 M 62–63 to Maggia Kraftwerke ; 1958 M 61 retired
M.	65	1918	Self-made			-	1923 in X 103
K	71-72	1913		6:00 am	4th	-	1956 M 72 to FO X 1057; 1958 K 71 retired
K	73	1913	Credé	8.54	6th	-	1941 ex C 51; Retired in 1952
L.	81-82	1913	Credé			-	1955 L 81 to BVZ X 207; L 82 to FO X 1056
FZ	91-92	1913	Credé	8.00	6th	-	from 1920 in class Z; Retired in 1952 and used as an emergency apartment
Xe 2/4	101	1917	SWS / SSW	8.30	13	-	Explosive units ; Retired in 1947/48; 1952 to FRT Xe 2/4 31
X	102	1882	SIG	6.15	3	-	Tower car ; 1923 ex M 64; 1953 to BA X 102
X	103	1918	Self-made			-	1923 ex M 65; Retired in 1952
X 1	104	1926	Self-made			-	1953 at BTI
Z 1	111-112	1914	Self-made	2.90	1	-	single-axle mail trailers; Retired in 1952

literature

• Claude Jeanmaire : The trams of Bern and Thun . Archive No. 5. Verlag Eisenbahn, Villigen AG 1969, ISBN 3-85649-005-1 .

Web links

• Right bank Thunerseebahn (STI). Thun Bhf - Interlaken West Bhf / Thun Bhf - Steffisburg In: discontinued-bahnen.ch by Jürg Ehrbar
• HR Lüthy-Pavan: Steffisburg - Thun - Interlaken. The history of the right bank Thunerseebahn. In: strassenbahn-europa.at. September 2010, accessed May 1, 2017 . 
• thunensis - the virtual Thun archive: A tram ride from Thun to Steffisburg in 1958

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i} H. R. Lüthy-Pavan: Steffisburg - Thun - Interlaken. The history of the right bank Thunerseebahn. In: strassenbahn-europa.at. September 2010, accessed May 1, 2017 . 
2. ↑ HP magazine 9/1990, page 16
3. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i} Claude Jeanmaire: The trams of Bern and Thun . Archive No. 5. Verlag Eisenbahn, Villigen AG 1969, ISBN 3-85649-005-1 .
4. ↑ ^{a b} Jürg Ehrbar: Right bank Thunerseebahn STI. Steffisburg – Thun – Interlaken. In: discontinued-bahnen.ch. Retrieved May 1, 2017 . 
5. ↑ ^{a b c} Josef Pospichal: Tram Steffisburg - Thun - Interlaken (STJ). (No longer available online.) In: pospichal.net. Archived from the original on February 20, 2015 ; accessed on May 1, 2017 . 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.