The Meiringen–Reichenbach–Aareschlucht tramway (, MRA) was a

metre gauge Metre-gauge railways ( US: meter-gauge railways) are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of or 1 metre. Metre gauge is used in around of tracks around the world. It was used by several European colonial powers including France, Britain and ...

electric

tram A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...

way in the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

canton of Bern The canton of Bern, or Berne (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the c ...

. It linked the town of

Meiringen Meiringen () is a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. Besides the village of Meiringen, the municipality includes the settlements of Balm, Brünigen, Eisenbolgen, Hausen, Prasti, ...

with the tourist attractions of the

Reichenbach Falls Reichenbach Falls () is a waterfall in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland, which drop a height of . At , the upper Grand Reichenbach Fall () is one of the highest waterfalls in the Alps. The Reichenbach loses of height from the top of ...

, where it served the lower station of the

Reichenbachfall Funicular The Reichenbachfall Funicular (; RfB) is a funicular in the Bernese Oberland region of the canton of Bern, Switzerland. It links Willigen, near Meiringen, with the uppermost of the Reichenbach Falls, famous as the site of the apparent death of ...

, and the Aare Gorge, where it served the gorge's western entrance. The tramway was opened in 1912, and closed in 1956, being replaced by a bus service. The line was electrified at 500 V DC. It had a length of , with 11 stops, a maximum gradient of 3.9% and a minimum radius of . After 1926, the tramway crossed the Meiringen–Innertkirchen railway by a level crossing at Alpbach; whilst both lines were of the same gauge there was no other connection between the lines. The only visible remains of line is the tram depot, in the centre of Meiringen and now used by the municipality, and the abutments of the bridge used to cross the

Aare river The Aare () or Aar () is the main tributary of the High Rhine (its discharge even exceeds that of the latter at their confluence) and the longest river that both rises and ends entirely within Switzerland. Its total length from its source to i ...

References

Bibliography

* Tram transport in Switzerland Transport in the canton of Bern Metre-gauge railways in Switzerland Defunct town tramway systems by city Railway companies established in 1912 Railway companies disestablished in 1956 {{Europe-rail-transport-stub