Brienz railway station is a railway station in the village of
Brienz
Brienz ( , , ) is a village and municipality on the northern shore of Lake Brienz, at the foot of the Brienzer Rothorn mountain, and in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland. Besides the village of Brienz, the municipality includes the ...
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 Internati ...
canton of Bern
The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. ...
. Brienz is a stop on the
Brünig line, owned by the
Zentralbahn
The Zentralbahn is a Swiss railway company that owns and operates two connecting railway lines in Central Switzerland and the Bernese Oberland. It was created on January 1, 2005, with the acquisition of the independently owned Luzern–Stans� ...
, that operates between
Interlaken
, neighboring_municipalities= Bönigen, Därligen, Matten bei Interlaken, Ringgenberg, Unterseen
, twintowns = Scottsdale (USA), Ōtsu (Japan), Třeboň (Czech Republic)
Interlaken (; lit.: ''between lakes'') is a Swiss town and mun ...
and
Lucerne
Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label= Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital o ...
. It is located across the street from
Brienz BRB railway station, the lower terminus of the
Brienz–Rothorn rack railway
The Brienz Rothorn Railway (, BRB) is a tourist rack railway in Switzerland, which climbs from Brienz, at the eastern end of Lake Brienz, to the summit of the Brienzer Rothorn. The railway is 7.6 kilometres (4.7 mi) long, is built to 800 ...
(BRB) that climbs to the summit of the
Brienzer Rothorn mountain
The Brienzer Rothorn is a mountain of the Emmental Alps, in Switzerland. With an elevation of above sea level, the Brienzer Rothorn is the highest summit of the range. To its west lies the Tannhorn, whilst to its east are Arnihaaggen, Höch Gumm ...
.
The station provides an interchange with the local bus network provided by
PostBus Switzerland
PostAuto Switzerland, PostBus Ltd. (known as in Swiss Standard German (), in Swiss French (), in Swiss Italian (), and in Romansh () is a subsidiary company of the Swiss Post, which provides regional and rural bus services throughout ...
. Shipping services operated by the
BLS AG on
Lake Brienz
Lake Brienz (german: Brienzersee) is a lake just north of the Alps, in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It has a length of about , a width of and a maximum depth of . Its area is ; the surface is above the sea-level. It is fed, among others, b ...
call at a quay adjacent to the station, linking to various lakeside places between Brienz and Interlaken. Amongst other destinations, buses link to the
Ballenberg open-air museum, whilst boats link to the lower station of the
Giessbach Funicular
The Giessbach Funicular (german: Giessbachbahn) is a historic funicular in the Swiss canton of Bern and municipality of Brienz. It links a landing stage on Lake Brienz, served by shipping services on the lake, to the Grand Hotel Giessbach and G ...
, which gives access to the
Giessbach Falls.
The station was opened in 1888 by the
Jura–Bern–Lucerne Railway
The Bernese Jura Railway (''Chemins de fer du Jura bernois'', abbreviated ''Jura bernois'', JB) was a railway company in Switzerland. The company was called the Jura–Bern–Luzern (''Jura–Bern–Lucerne'', JBL) from 1 July 1884. The Jura–Ber ...
, as the western terminus of the Brünig line, with journeys to and from Interlaken requiring passengers and goods to transfer between trains and boats on Lake Brienz. The Brienz–Rothorn line terminus opened in 1892. Brienz remained the terminus of the Brünig line until 1916, when the line was extended along the north shore of Lake Brienz to
Interlaken Ost
Interlaken Ost or Interlaken East is a railway station in the resort town of Interlaken in the Swiss canton of Bern. The station was previously known as Interlaken Zollhaus. The town has one other station, Interlaken West.
Interlaken Ost is an ...
, thus eliminating the need for transfer. Brünig line trains were hauled by
steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the loco ...
s until the early 1940s, when the line was electrified. Ownership of the Brünig line section of the station was transferred to the
Swiss Federal Railway
Swiss Federal Railways (german: link=no, Schweizerische Bundesbahnen, ''SBB''; french: link=no, Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses, ''CFF''; it, Ferrovie federali svizzere, ''FFS'') is the national railway company of Switzerland. It is usuall ...
in 1903, and to the Zentralbahn in 2004.
The Brünig line platforms of the station lie alongside the lake, and comprise two tracks with two flanking platforms. On the northern and inland side, the station building is situated between the platforms and the main road along the north shore of the lake. The terminus of the Brienz–Rothorn rack railway lies on the opposite side of this road, and the two railways and are not physically connected. The bus terminus is located to the west of the station building, between the Brünig line platforms and the main road, whilst the ferry pier is immediately to the south-east of the station, accessed by a
level crossing
A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an overpass
An overpass (called ...
.
[
]
Services
The following services stop at Brienz:
* InterRegio ''Luzern-Interlaken Express'': hourly service between and .
* Regio: hourly service between and Interlaken Ost.
Gallery
File:Bahnhof Brienz 1888.jpg, The station in 1888, when it was a terminus.
File:Brienz - Bahnhof - BLS Schifflände 2016-08-11 17-52-35.JPG, The station building seen from the ferry pier.
File:Brienz railway station.jpg, BLS passenger ship ''Jungfrau'' at the ferry pier.
File:Brienz Bahnhof.jpg, From left to right: ferry pier, Brünig line platforms, BRB terminus.
File:Timjwatts Breinz Railway Station Looking East 1 2003-07-15.jpg, Breinz Railway Station, taken on 15 July 2003, before remodelling.
References
External links
* {{SBB web, 8305, brienz
Railway stations in Switzerland opened in 1888
Railway stations in the canton of Bern
Brienz
Zentralbahn stations