New Athos Cave Railway ( ab, Афон Ҿыц аҳаҧытә метро;

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

: ახალი ათონის მღვიმური რკინიგზა, russian: Новоафонская пещерная железная дорога), also known as New Athos Subway, is an underground electric railroad serving the New Athos Cave, in the town of

New Athos New Athos or Akhali Atoni ( ka, ახალი ათონი, ''Akhali Atoni''; ab, Афон Ҿыц, ''Afon Ch'yts''; russian: Новый Афон; ''Novy Afon'', gr, Νέος Άθως, ''Neos Athos'') is a town in the Gudauta ''raion'' of ...

, Abkhazia.

Route

The line is a single track and electrified narrow gauge railway with a

third rail A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway ...

. Opened in 1975, it has a length of and three stations. It starts at the entrance of the caves, nearby Psyrtscha station of the Abkhazian railway. From the Entrance Gate station, it reaches two cave halls: Apsny Hall (or Abkhazia) and Anakopea Hall. Apsny station serves to lead the tourists at the beginnings of the show cave, and Anakopea to bring them back to the entrance gate, at the end of the tour. The line counts a depot just before Entrance station, and a service tunnel between it and Apsny.

Rolling stock

The railway has three power-concentrated

battery electric multiple unit A battery electric multiple unit (BEMU), battery electric railcar or accumulator railcar is an electrically driven multiple unit or railcar whose energy is derived from rechargeable batteries driving the traction motors. Prime advantages of these ...

s built by the Railroad Machinery Plants of Riga in Latvia, including two Ep «Tourist» trains and the newly built Ep-563 train, and also the auxiliary mining battery-electric locomotive ARP8 which is used in case of malfunction of EMU's motor car. Two Ep trains were built in 1975 and later both of them were modernized in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

in 2005 and 2009. In 2013, due to the wear of these trains, the railway management ordered a new train in Riga, which was built the next year. Since 2014 this has been the only train in use. The first Ep train is based at Anakopia station for doubling the Ep 563 train in case of malfunction. Another Ep train is based at the depot. Each train consists of 6 cars, including 1

power car In rail transport, the expression power car may refer to either of two distinct types of rail vehicle: *a vehicle that propels, and commonly also controls, a passenger train, multiple unit or tram, often as the lead vehicle; *a vehicle equipped ...

with driver's cab, motors and power equipment and 5 trailer cars for passengers (4 intermediate cars and 1 observation car in the end). Both models run either on a

with 380 V DC or batteries with 240 V DC being used for short unelectrified sections at switches without a third rail, and also at passenger stations where the third rail has no voltage for safety reasons.

Gallery

Notes

References

External links