United Swiss Railways

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United Swiss Railways (VSB)
United Swiss Railways route
Gauge : 1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Legend
571  m above sea level M. Wil 110.62
                  
TB from Ebnat
439  m above sea level M. Winterthur 137.81
                  
80.46 St. Gallen 670  m above sea level M.
431  m above sea level M. Wallisellen 93.23
                  
66.0 Rorschach harbor 398  m above sea level M.
464  m above sea level M. Uster 81.35
                  
WR of forest
                  
65.04 Rorschach 399  m above sea level M.
482  m above sea level M. Rüti 65.94
                  
57.83 Rheineck 400  m above sea level M.
ZG to Pfäffikon
                  
53.80 St. Margrethen 402  m above sea level M.
409  m above sea level M. Rapperswil 59.35
                  
41.18 Altstätten 430  m above sea level M.
425  m above sea level M. Brick bridge 34.32
                  
15.90 Box 447  m above sea level M.
Weesen 31.5
                  
dotted: NOB
                  
0.00 Sargans 482  m above sea level M.
438  m above sea level M. Näfels 36.0
                  
12.32 Landquart 523  m above sea level M.
472  m above sea level M. Glarus 43.0
                  
25.72 Chur 585  m above sea level M.

Without intermediate stations and without connecting railways.
Only connecting railways operated by the VSB are shown.
United Swiss Railways train at Sargans
Detail from a wood engraving, 1858
The frugality of the VSB repeatedly caused biting ridicule.

The United Swiss Railways (VSB or VSB) were a railway company of Switzerland . They were the smallest of the five main railways that were nationalized from 1902 .

Foundation and financing

The United Swiss Railways came into being on May 1, 1857 through the merger of three railway companies, all of which were in financial difficulties:

  • The St. Gallisch-Appenzell Railway (SGAE) put the Winterthur - Wil - St. Gallen - Rorschach line into operation between October 15, 1855 and October 25, 1856 . A number of significant bridges had to be built during the construction of the railway line. There was a lack of funds for the final payments for the ongoing construction work.
  • The Südostbahn (SOB) - not to be confused with today's Swiss Südostbahn - sought to build a Lukmanier ground, which by the engineer as early as 1839 Richard La Nicca had been suggested. The company was founded on September 1, 1853 with share capital of 25 million francs. The capital came from the cantons of St. Gallen and Graubünden and above all from English banks. The start of the construction work carried out by English contractors was unsatisfactory. The chief engineer Pickering was dismissed without notice. Due to financial difficulties, the construction of the Rorschach - St. Margrethen - Sargans - Chur , Sargans - Weesen - Ziegelbrücke - Rapperswil and Weesen - Glarus routes stalled. The section on the Walensee required the construction of many tunnels. The lines of the Südostbahn would have become lucrative access lines if an Eastern Alpine Railway had come about.
  • The Glatthalbahn (Gl-TB) opened the Wallisellen - Uster line on August 1, 1856 . However, there was not enough money to continue building the line to Rapperswil.

The VSB's financial start-up problems resulted, among other things, from the fact that the construction costs were estimated far too low, which led to an additional requirement for capital of around 20 million francs. A French investor was found to provide capital. The Parisian banker Isaac Pereire from Crédit mobilier aimed for a transversal to the Eastern Alps as a link between the French railway companies Chemin de fer du Midi , Chemins de fer de l'Ouest and Chemin de fer de l'Est with its rail holdings in the Balkans .

Further development

Rorschach station, in the back the city

The VSB supported projects for a Splügen railway up until the 1890s , but they had no chance due to a lack of funding. At least the VSB managed to enforce a right of joint use on the Wallisellen – Zurich line of the Swiss Northeast Railway (NOB) for the important connection to Zurich .

Since the construction of an Eastern Alpine Railway from Chur to Italy opposite the Gotthard Railway was subject, the Rhine Valley Railway from Rorschach to Chur remained a regional line. Over time, Rorschach was ousted by Romanshorn as the leading port city on the Swiss shores of Lake Constance . The NOB expanded the port in Romanshorn and put its own steamships into operation. In 1869 the NOB opened the Rorschach – Romanshorn lake line , with the NOB track lying next to that of the VSB between Rorschach Hafen and Rorschach. The sea line of the NOB and the Bischofszellerbahn Gossau - Sulgen , which went into operation in 1876 , withdrew some traffic from the VSB. Since the NOB began operating on the shorter, left-bank Zurich- Thalwil- Brick Bridge in 1875 , the former main line Wallisellen-Rapperswil lost its importance. The VSB were able to hold their own thanks to extreme frugality. In the Rorschach workshop, under the direction of Adolf Klose, machine-technical achievements and locomotive designs were created, which received attention and recognition.

Rorschach: port with port station. The tracks of the VSB and the NOB were next to each other between the port and city stations.

In connection with the merger negotiations, the VSB was able to take over the concession for the construction of a Bötzbergbahn on July 16, 1857 . In 1864 the VSB gave up this concession due to a lack of financial means.

The VSB took care of the operation of some other companies, such as the Toggenburgerbahn (TB), which opened in 1870 , the Wald – Rüti-Bahn (WR) opened in 1876 and, for a time, the Lake Zurich – Gotthardbahn (ZGB). The VSB was also financially involved in the Toggenburg and Wald – Rüti railway.

Share capital and fixed bonds as well as dividends of the VSB ...

... and to compare the NOB.

Until the 1870s, the VSB suffered from a lack of international connections. The competitor of the VSB, the Swiss Nordostbahn (NOB), the conveyed goods wagons with Trajektschiffen across lake . The United Swiss Railways pushed the construction of a Bodenseegürtelbahn (sections St. Margrethen – Lauterach and Lauterach – Lindau ). In 1865 this strategy, which is important for the canton of St. Gallen, was secured by an international treaty . On August 1, 1872, the Vorarlberger Bahn (VB) handed over the connection from St. Margrethen to Lindau and on October 20, 1872 also the Feldkirch – Buchs railway line , which stimulated traffic. The Arlbergbahn , which opened on September 6, 1884, had a significant impact on traffic development . With the opening of the narrow-gauge Landquart – Davos railway in 1889 and the Rhaetian Railway's Chur – Thusis line in 1896 , the VSB became their access line.

Like many other societies, the VSB suffered badly from the economic crisis at the end of the 1870s. Their share prices fell massively. In contrast to the NOB or the Swiss Central Railway , the VSB were able to distribute a modest dividend from 1871 onwards. Because the VSB was not allowed to expand the network further after 1859, the financial base was very solid with a low level of debt.

During the railway accident in Vonwil on December 31, 1879 , a train coming from Winterthur derailed in Vonwil near St. Gallen . The two locomotives came to rest to the left and right of the railroad track, the cars pushed into one another. The accident claimed two lives and several, some seriously injured.

Route network

No. Designation of the individual lines opening comment Property length Operating length
1. Winterthur – St. Gallen September 28, 1855 - March 25, 1856 built by SGAE 71,889 km 72,765 km
St. Gallen – Rorschach October 25, 1856
2. Rorschach Harbor – Rorschach 92,349 km 91,730 km
Rorschach – St. Margrethen – Sargans – Chur August 25, 1857 - July 1, 1858 projected by SOB
3. Sargans – Weesen – Ziegelbrücke February 15, 1859 - July 1, 1859 93,048 km 102,194 km
Brick Bridge – Rapperswil February 15, 1859
Rapperswil – Uster – Wallisellen (–Zurich) August 1, 1856 - February 15, 1859 built by Gl-TB and VSB
4th Weesen – Näfels – Glarus February 15, 1859
Projected by SOB Weesen– Näfels. 1918 Operation ceased, 1931 canceled		 11,638 km 11,488 km
5. Toggenburgerbahn (TB): Wil – Ebnat-Kappel June 24, 1870 24,852 km
6th Wald-Rüti Railway (WR): Wald – Rüti ZH September 29, 1876 6,570 km
7th Lake Zurich – Gotthard Railway (ZGB):
Rapperswil – Pfäffikon SZ		 August 27, 1878
(until December 31, 1889)		 1890 merger with WE 4,020 km
Total 268,924 km 313,619 km

Rolling stock

The locomotives that were procured by the VSB or its predecessor railways reached an average age of 38.7 years.If you omit the eight machines from the Glatthalbahn, which were sold to Italy after 5 to 7 years, you even get an average age of 93 other machines from 41.6 years. The last VSB steam locomotive was retired from the SBB in 1933.

The series designation of the VSB locomotives was from 1860 to 1886 with Roman numerals I to VI according to the chronological order of the series. From 1887 onwards, the locomotives were named according to the system that was standardized throughout Switzerland .

The fleet included the following machine types. The designation valid from 1902 is shown in brackets.

Series
until 1887		 Series
from 1887		 CDB no.
until 1902		 SBB no.
from 1902		 number Construction year Manufacturer Wheel alignment discarded comment image
I. - ( Ec 2/5 ) 1-12 - 12 1855-56 Esslingen B3 ' (1874–1886
converted into
Series III)		 Engerth type , taken over by SGAE in 1857 Ec 2/5
12-20 8th 1858-59 Escher Wyss Engerth type, ordered by SOB
II A2E ( Eb 2/5 ) 21-22 - 20th 1857-58 Esslingen B3 ' 1881 Engerth type, ordered by SOB Eb 2/5
23-32 5680-5699 1902-1925
32-40 Engerth type
21'-22 ' 2 1895 VSB Rorschach 1909 Construction type Engerth , parts from No. 21-22 reused
II B2T ( C 2/2 ) 41'-42 '
from 1880: 91-92		 91-92 2 1875 Krauss B. 1903 C 2/2
II B2T ( B 2/3 ) 45'-46 ' 1071-1072 2 1876 VSB 1'B 1904-1905 B 2/3
III - ( C 2/3 ) 41-43 - 8th 1856-57 Karlsruhe 1'B
Sold to Italy in 1863		 Taken over by Glatthalbahn in 1857 , where it was designated as Series V.
44-48 1858 ordered by Gl-TB
III B3 ( C 3/3 ) 1-20 2451-2470 20th 1874–1886 rebuilt from series I. C. 1903-1931 C 3/3
IV D4 ( Ed 4/4 ) 61-64 7591-7594 4th 1876-77 Hartmann D. 1908-1925 Ed 4/4
from 1885:  V
from 1886:  III 		E3 ( E 3/3 ) TB  1-3 8395-8397 3 1870 Krauss C. 1909-1912 procured by the VSB for the operation of the Toggenburgerbahn E 3/3
VI E2 ( Ec 2/2 ) 71-87 6071-6087 17th 1875-1902 VSB, Hartmann, Esslingen, SLM B3 1911-1933 No. 86–87 delivered to SBB B 3/4
(no) F2 ( E 2/2 ) A, B, C 8197-8199 3 1876 Krauss B. 1902 (1948) E 2/2
- A3T ( B 3/4 ) 101-115 1581-1595 15th 1890-1901 SLM 1'C 1913-1929 Superheated steam - two-cylinder composite locomotive B 3/4
- B3T ( C 3/3 ) 151-157 2481-2487 7th 1892, 97 Hartmann, SLM C. 1915-1924 C 3/3

business

Sitterbrücke near St. Gallen. The bridges over the Sitter, Glatt, Uze and Thur were built according to the same construction principles.
The stone arch bridge over the Goldach, which was still in use as a single lane at the time, when steam was in operation in the early 1920s.
From 1857 to 1928 the covered wooden bridge near Ragaz defied the sparks from steam locomotives.
Buchs station with level crossing in 1905.

Because of rising wood prices, the VSB searched for alternatives for firing their steam locomotives and 1,857 large is secured peat occur in Möggingen in Radolfzell . As a means of mass transport, the railroad enabled access to foreign hard coal deposits. In 1861, the VSB had largely completed the conversion to coal-firing.

In 1865 the VSB violated the telegraph shelf with the recently introduced electrical signal discs . In 1872 wagons and locomotives were converted to the buffer system.

From July 18 to 27, 1874, the Federal Shooting Festival took place in St. Gallen . The VSB transported 140,000 people to St. Gallen within ten days, which was only possible with the support of staff and rolling stock from the NOB and VB.

On December 31, 1879, a train coming from Winterthur derailed at Vonwilbrücke near St. Gallen. The two locomotives came to rest to the left and right of the railroad track, the cars pushed into one another. The accident claimed two lives and several, some seriously injured.
→ Main article: Railway accident in Vonwil

The national exhibition in Zurich in 1883 brought the first continuous train from Rorschach via St. Gallen to Zurich. Before that, the VSB trains had to be switched to the NOB trains in Winterthur. On June 1, 1894, the Bernese time was replaced by Central European Time (CET). Since June 1, 1896, direct cars have been running between St. Gallen and Geneva .

nationalization

Border station St. Margrethen with a ready-to-go passenger train in the direction of St. Gallen. The express train locomotive B 3/4 came from the United Swiss Railways (No. 101–115).
The Sirnach station building expanded with a transverse wing .

In 1901, shortly before the nationalization , the VSB took over the Toggenburgerbahn (TB) without compensation from the canton of St. Gallen , which indirectly subsidized the construction of the Ricken tunnel. On July 1, 1902, the VSB was nationalized and from then on belonged to the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB). The VSB started operating on January 1, 1901, for the account of the federal government.

Part of the old company structures was retained for a long time. The former SBB District Directorate IV emerged from the VSB headquarters in St. Gallen. The former SBB main workshop in Chur had its roots in the SOB. Over time, the now closed SBB Rorschach locomotive depot emerged from the VSB's main workshop . The oldest ring segment locomotive depot with a turntable in Switzerland still exists in Uster from the time of the VSB . The carriage house has been restored and now serves as a depot and locomotive workshop of the Steam Railway Club Zurich Oberland , the heritage railway line Bauma - Hinwil operates.

With the electrification of the replacement was 1925-1928 Sitter , Glatt - Uze - and Thur bridge between St. Gallen and Wil and the wooden Rhine bridge at Ragaz due. The stone bridge over the Goldach , however, was preserved and has been used in two lanes since 1993 .

The kilometering of the lines of the former VSB was not changed . The kilometer indications still begin in Sargans, where kilometer 0 is located.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Anton Heer: 150 years of the Rorschach-Konstanz lake line: How the lake railway started rolling. In: St. Galler Tagblatt (online) from May 1, 2019
  2. ^ The railway accident in Vonwil near St. Gallen on December 31, 1879. (PDF 1.6 MB) Die Eisenbahn = Le chemin de fer, Volume 12 (1880), Issue 3, pp. 16-17 , accessed on February 1, 2014 .
  3. ^ The SBB numbered the locomotives they took over after the boiler overhauls were due.
  4. ↑ Incorrectly referred to as a tank locomotive by the VSB .
  5. ↑ After the conversion at the VSB, still incorrectly referred to as a tank locomotive.