Gerschnialpbahn is a
funicular railway in
Obwalden
Obwalden, also Obwald (german: Kanton Obwalden, rm, Chantun Sursilvania; french: Canton d'Obwald; it, Canton Obvaldo), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of seven municipalities and the seat of the govern ...
,
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
. The line leads from
Engelberg at 1000 m to
Gerschnialp at 1262 m on the slopes of
Titlis
Titlis is a mountain of the Uri Alps, located on the border between the cantons of Obwalden and Bern. At above sea level, it is the highest summit of the range north of the Susten Pass, between the Bernese Oberland and Central Switzerland. It is ...
(3239 m). The funicular with two cars has a
single track with a
passing loop and a tunnel (88 m) at upper end. Journey time is 5 minutes. It operates all year.
Different ways lead from Gerschnialp to
Trübsee at 1800 m, the intermediary station to the summit station of Titlis (3028 m). In 1927, an aerial cableway had been built, earlier a hiking path used. Since 1984, the lower station of the funicular is next to the direct aerial cableway Engelberg-Trübsee and, until 2015, the lower section ran parallel to the funicular. At Untertrübsee, near Gerschnialp, there is the aerial cableway ''Älplerseil Untertrübsee-Trübsee''.
A bus line links the base station to
Engelberg railway station
Engelberg railway station is a Swiss railway station in the municipality of Engelberg in the canton of Obwalden. It is the terminus of the Luzern–Stans–Engelberg line, which is owned by the Zentralbahn railway company
The Zentralbahn i ...
, 800 m away.
History
On request of the municipal council of Engelberg, the
Swiss Federal Assembly
The Federal Assembly (german: Bundesversammlung, french: Assemblée fédérale, it, Assemblea federale, rm, Assamblea federala), also known as the Swiss parliament (''Parlament'', ''Parlement'', ''Parlamento''), is Switzerland's federal leg ...
granted a concession for the funicular on 8 March 1912. Initial duration was 80 years.
The funicular opened on 21 January 1913.
It was constructed by
Bell Maschinenfabrik
A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inter ...
, Kriens.
In 1950, new cars increased the capacity from 40 to 70 passengers per car. The cars are still in use.
In 1964, AC drive was replaced with a DC system leading to a performance increase from 140 to 250 hp. Also automatic controls were installed.
A new base station was inaugurated in 1978.
In 1995, drive and controls were renewed.
Titlis Cliff Walk
The Titlis Cliff Walk is a pedestrian bridge along the cliff of Mount Titlis in the Swiss Alps. Built at around above sea level, it is believed to be the highest-elevation suspension bridge in Europe. It broke the record held by Salbit Bridge, als ...
was inaugurated in December 2012 to commemorate its 100th anniversary.
During the reconstruction of the aerial cableway in 2015/2016, the funicular was again the only transport in direction of Trübsee.
Drahtseilbahn Engelberg-Gerschnialp AG
The company ''Drahtseilbahn Engelberg-Gerschnialp AG'' was founded in 1911 to build and operate the funicular.
From 1913 to 1960, the company generated a cashflow of 1.15 million Swiss francs.
In 1982, the company merged with ''Luftseilbahn Gerschnialp-Trübsee AG'' and became ''Bergbahnen Engelberg-Gerschnialp-Trübsee AG''. In 1992, another merger led to the current .
References
Further reading
*
* {{Schienennetz Schweiz
External links
Titlis Bergbahnen: GeschichteTitlis Bergbahnen: Technische DatenEngelberg: Offene AnlagenFuniculars.net: Engelberg-Gerschnialp
Funicular railways in Switzerland
Transport in Obwalden
Metre gauge railways in Switzerland
Railway lines opened in 1913
Engelberg