Vellachtalbahn

Vellachtalbahn Völkermarkt-Kühnsdorf - Eisenkappel
Geographical data
continent	Europe
country	Austria
state	Carinthia
Route-related data
Route length:	17.5 km
Gauge :	760 mm ( Bosnian gauge )
Legend 0.0 Völkermarkt - Kühnsdorf 441  m above sea level A. Transition from the Klagenfurt – Bleiburg line 4.0 Eberndorf 5.7 Gösselsdorf 9.6 Sittersdorf 11.1 Miklauzhof crossing station 477  m above sea level A. 14.1 Rechberg 506  m above sea level A. 17.5 Eisenkappel 546  m above sea level A.

The Vellachtalbahn (in the local vernacular also Vike called) was a last of the ÖBB -powered narrow-gauge railway with 760 mm gauge in Carinthia .

history

After completion of the Kärntner Bahn , a wing of the kk Südbahn from Marburg (today Maribor) to Villach , efforts were made towards the end of the 19th century to connect regions and valleys off the main lines to the rail network. In 1894 a pre- license was granted for a narrow-gauge railway connection from Kühnsdorf near Völkermarkt to the Vellachtal , a year later another pre-license was granted for a railway leading north from Kühnsdorf to Brückl .

In 1900 the final concession for a narrow-gauge local railway from Kühnsdorf to Eisenkappel was granted. In 1901 the "Aktiengesellschaft Kühnsdorf-Eisenkappel" was founded and in the same year the completion date of the local railway extended to November 1, 1902. The 17.7 km long narrow-gauge railway was opened on October 5, 1902. Initially, the kk Austrian State Railways , and from May 5, 1903, the kk priv. Südbahn-Gesellschaft were commissioned with the management. The project of the northern route was not pursued for economic reasons.

The railway was initially operated with two T series locomotives (later ÖBB 198). While passenger traffic remained rather modest - the Völkermarkt-Kühnsdorf station on the southern railway was about six kilometers outside of the city - freight traffic developed positively , mainly because of the pulp mill in Rechberg and a sawmill in Eisenkappel. During the First World War , one of the two locomotives had to be given up for military service; after the war, it was replaced by a U class locomotive . In 1924 the heavy freight locomotive Kh.1 (ÖBB 499) was delivered.

Nevertheless, there was an economic decline from 1915 onwards, so that the company was finally liquidated in 1931. The railway became the property of the Federal Railways BBÖ.

During the Second World War , two locomotives of the Saxon VI K series were stationed on the Vellachtalbahn, but there is no evidence that the locomotives were actually used. After the war, some former army field railroad locomotives , which the ÖBB classified as class 699 in their numbering scheme, were used to replace the decrepit class T. Class 199 and 399 locomotives were also in service on the Vellachtalbahn. With the exception of a single shunting locomotive in Kühnsdorf and a works locomotive of the pulp factory, both former Heeresfeldbahn diesel locomotives of the type HF 130 C , no diesel locomotives were in use on the Vellachtalbahn.

After the Second World War, the railway was known to the locals under the name "Vike" (pronounced: "Fiike"). The name probably comes from a train driver or train attendant named Viktor. Another explanation is the inscription "CR" (for Völkermarkt-Kühnsdorf-Eisenkappel) returns to the landmarks along the path which verballhornt could have been. Even today, when people talk about the old Vellachtalbahn, the nickname is used very often.

The increasing competition of road traffic in the post-war period led to a steady decline in passenger traffic, so that the responsible Federal Railway Directorate in Villach endeavored to at least stop passenger traffic on the narrow-gauge railway. On January 16, 1965, a train derailed in Rechberg after it hit the snow masses of a roof avalanche from a factory building. This comparatively harmless incident was used as an opportunity to completely stop passenger traffic on the entire route and the section Rechberg - Eisenkappel for safety reasons. This section was removed in 1968.

The freight traffic to Rechberg remained in full for the time being. In particular, the transport of chlorine gas for the pulp mill was initially not allowed to be carried out on the road and secured the existence of the railway for a few years, although no more investments were made and the top speed had to be reduced to 10 km / h in places due to defects in the superstructure. By 1971, the expansion of the road had been completed to such an extent that the transports for the pulp mill could also be processed on it and rail traffic was completely stopped. The Vellachtalbahn was the first narrow-gauge line of the ÖBB, which was completely discontinued. After efforts by the Association of Carinthian Railway Friends to create a museum railway failed, the line was dismantled in 1971. The locomotive 699.103, which led the dismantling trains, was the only one that remained in the ÖBB fleet and was transferred to the Steyrtalbahn as a freight locomotive , the others were retired.

literature

• Walter Krobot, JOSlezak, H.Sternhart: Narrow gauge through Austria . Slezak, Vienna ⁴ 1991, ISBN 3-85416-095-X
• Peter Wegenstein: Bahn im Bild Volume 74 - Narrow Gauge Railways in Carinthia . Pospischil publishing house, Vienna 1990
• Alfred Niel, The Vike drives through the Carinthian lowlands . Carinthia publishing house, Klagenfurt, 1971

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} P. Wegenstein: Bahn im Bild, Volume 74 , pp. 4-6, Verlag Pospischil, Vienna
2. ↑ , RGBl. 1900/35 .
3. ↑ RGBl. 1901/115 .
4. ↑ ^{a b c} F. Gemeinböck: 35 years ago - from for the "Vike" , Eisenbahnverkehr aktuell 5/2006, pp. 7–9, Verlag Pospischil, Vienna
5. ^ W. Krobot, JO Slezak, H. Sternhart: Schmalspurig durch Österreich , Fahrpark der Gauge 760 mm, p. 68, Verlag Slezak, Vienna
6. ↑ Zeitschrift Eisenbahn 10/1968: The "Eisenkappler" is removed , p. 178, Verlag Bohmann, Vienna