![Dolderbahn IMG 4183](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Dolderbahn_IMG_4183.JPG)
The Dolderbahn (Db or DBZ) is a long
rack railway
A rack railway (also rack-and-pinion railway, cog railway, or cogwheel railway) is a steep grade railway with a toothed rack rail, usually between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels or pinions that mesh with ...
in the
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
city of
Zürich
Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
. The line is in Zürich's
Hottingen and
Fluntern
Fluntern is a Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter in the district 7 (Zürich), district 7 in Zürich, Switzerland. It was formerly a municipality of its own, having been incorporated into Zürich in 1893. The quarter has a population of 7,325 di ...
suburbs on the south slope of the
Adlisberg
Adlisberg, with an elevation of , is a wooded mountain in Switzerland overlooking Zürichsee (Lake Zürich) to the northwest near the Zürichberg.
Geography
Adlisberg mountain is located to the east of the city of Zürich, between the Glat ...
mountain. The lower terminus of the line is at ''Römerhof'', some from the city centre, where it connects with lines 3 and 8 of the
Zürich tramway. The upper terminus at ''Bergstation Dolderbahn'' is adjacent to the
Dolder Grand Hotel
The Dolder Grand (formerly known as Grand Hotel Dolder) is a 5 star superior hotel in the Swiss city of Zürich. It is located on Adlisberg hill, some from, and above, the city centre. Built in 1899, the hotel spreads out over and offers 173 ro ...
and the Dolder recreation area. Two intermediate stations, at ''Titlisstrasse'' and ''Waldhaus Dolder'', are also served.
The line is owned by the ''Dolderbahn-Betriebs AG'', which is itself 50% owned by the city of Zürich, and is operated on their behalf by the municipal transport operator ''
Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich
Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich (VBZ) is a public transport operator in the Swiss city of Zürich, and is wholly owned by the city. Previously known as the Städtische Strassenbahn Zürich (StStZ), the organisation was founded in 1896 and adopted its cu ...
''. The line was opened in 1895 as a
funicular railway
A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite en ...
, and converted to rack operation in 1973. Because of this history, it is still sometimes erroneously referred to as a funicular or cable car.
History
The first proposal for the line was in 1890, when Heinrich Hürlimann purchased land in the area, although his first proposals fell through. In 1893, the ''Dolderbahn-Aktiengesellschaft'' company was formed to build the line, with construction commencing the following year. The line was built as a funicular railway and opened in 1895. The upper terminus of the funicular was roughly on the site of the uppermost of the current line's two intermediate stations. The funicular had a length of and overcame a height difference of with a maximum gradient of 18%.
Following the opening of the line, a restaurant was built at the line's upper terminus; this became the Dolder Waldhaus Hotel in 1906. In 1899, the Dolder Grand Hotel was built uphill from the upper terminus of the funicular, and was linked to the funicular by a short electric
tramway, with a single tramcar. The line was built to the same gauge as Zürich's other electric tramways, but was never connected to any of them. In 1922 the tramcar was rebuilt to allow one-man operation, but in 1930 it was replaced by a bus.
In 1971 the concession of the original company expired, and a new company, the ''Dolderbahn-Betriebs-AG'', was created to convert the line to rack operation. At the same time the line was extended at its upper end to directly serve the Dolder Grand Hotel, thus replacing the bus that had in turn replaced the tram. The new line opened in 1973, and in 1999 the ''Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich'' took over operation of the line. In 2004, the line was completely renovated along with the four stations and two railcars. As part of this rebuild, a new design of flexible rack turnout was installed at the passing point.
[
]
Operation
The line is long and overcomes a height difference of . It is built to metre gauge
Metre-gauge railways are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of or 1 metre.
The metre gauge is used in around of tracks around the world. It was used by European colonial powers, such as the French, British and German Empires. In Europe, la ...
( gauge), uses the Strub rack system
A rack railway (also rack-and-pinion railway, cog railway, or cogwheel railway) is a steep grade railway with a toothed rack rail, usually between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels or pinions that mesh with ...
and is single track
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
with a single intermediate passing loop
A passing loop (UK usage) or passing siding (North America) (also called a crossing loop, crossing place, refuge loop or, colloquially, a hole) is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at or near a station, where trains or ...
. The passing loop is situated between ''Titlisstrasse'' and ''Waldhaus Dolder'' stations and features flexible rack turnouts at both ends.
The line is operated by a pair of four-wheel rack railcars, each of which can carry 100 passengers. The cars are electrically driven off a 600 volt
The volt (symbol: V) is the unit of electric potential, electric potential difference (voltage), and electromotive force in the International System of Units (SI). It is named after the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta (1745–1827).
Defi ...
direct current
Direct current (DC) is one-directional flow of electric charge. An electrochemical cell is a prime example of DC power. Direct current may flow through a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through semiconductors, insulators, or even ...
overhead supply and are propelled by a cog-wheel attached to the downhill of the vehicles two axles. They were built by the Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
, with electrical equipment from Brown, Boveri & Cie
Brown, Boveri & Cie. (Brown, Boveri & Company; BBC) was a Swiss group of electrical engineering companies.
It was founded in Zürich, in 1891 by Charles Eugene Lancelot Brown and Walter Boveri who worked at the Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon. In 1 ...
, in 1972. In line with its funicular origins, the line has no depot and no track connection to any other line. The cars are stabled and maintained in the terminal stations.[
The line runs from 06.20 until 23.30 every day, with services running every 10, 15 or 20 minutes depending on the time of day. The journey time is approximately 5 minutes. The standard '']Zürcher Verkehrsverbund
The ZVV (German abbreviation for Zürcher Verkehrsverbund, translated into English as Zürich Transport Network or Zürich Traffic Network) is a public transportation system. It combines rail, bus, tram, trolleybus, lake boat, cable car and othe ...
'' zonal fare tariffs apply, with the whole of the line being within fare zone 110 (Zürich city, formerly zone 10).
Future
In June 2021, the Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich ordered two new railcars from Stadler Rail
Stadler Rail is a Swiss manufacturer of railway rolling stock, with an emphasis on regional train multiple units and trams. It is also focused on niche products, such as being one of the last European manufacturers of rack railway rolling stock ...
at Bussnang
Bussnang is a municipality in the district of Weinfelden in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland.
History
Bussnang may be first mentioned in 822 as ''Pussinwanc''. During the Early Middle Ages, the Abbey of St. Gall owned much of the land arou ...
to replace the existing pair of cars used on the line. The new railcars are scheduled to be delivered in mid-2024 and will cost SFr
SFR (; ''Société française du radiotéléphone'', ) is a French telecommunications company.
As of December 2015, it had 21.9 million customers in Metropolitan France for mobile services, and provided 6.35 million households with high-spee ...
10.6m.[
]
See also
* List of funicular railways
This is a list of funicular railways, organised by place within country and continent. The funiculars range from short urban lines to significant multi-section mountain railways.
A funicular railway is distinguished from the similar incline eleva ...
* List of funiculars in Switzerland
This is a list of all funiculars in Switzerland, commercially operated according to a timetable.
See also
*List of funicular railways
*List of heritage railways and funiculars in Switzerland
*List of aerial tramways in Switzerland
*List of moun ...
* List of rack railways
This is a list of rack railways, both operating and closed.
Angola
* Lengue gorge.
* on Benguela railway – 1906. 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) gauge.
Argentina
* Transandine Railway between Mendoza and Santa Rosa de Los Andes, Chile, see Chile ...
* List of Swiss rack railways
References
External links
*
Video of ascent of the line from YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dolderbahn
Metre gauge railways in Switzerland
Rack railways in Switzerland
Railway lines in Switzerland
Transport in Zürich
Railway lines opened in 1895
600 V DC railway electrification