Monte Generoso Railway
| Monte Generoso railway. | |||
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Train at the summit station
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| Overview | |||
| Status | Reopening 8th April 2017 | ||
| Locale | Ticino, Switzerland | ||
| Operation | |||
| Opened | June 5, 1890 | ||
| Owner | Migros supermarket chain | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) | ||
| Track gauge | 800 mm (2 ft 7 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Electrification | 850 V, DC, overhead | ||
| Highest elevation | 1,605 m (5,266 ft) | ||
| Maximum incline | 22% | ||
| Rack system | Abt | ||
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The Monte Generoso railway or Ferrovia Monte Generoso (MG) is a mountain railway line in the Italian speaking canton of Ticino, in south-east Switzerland. The line runs from Capolago, on Lake Lugano, to a terminus near the summit of Monte Generoso. It is the highest railway in Ticino. The summit (1,701 m or 5,581 ft) offers extensive views over the Lombardy Plain, part of the Po Valley, and towards the Alps.
Whilst the railway lies entirely within Switzerland, the summit station is only a few metres from the international border with the Italian region of Lombardy. The line is owned by the Migros group, better known for operating supermarkets throughout Switzerland.
The line is currently closed, whilst the railway station and restaurant complex at the summit is being rebuilt. It is scheduled to reopen on 8th April 2017.
In 1867, Doctor Carlo Posta built a hotel on Monte Generoso, near to the current location of the Bellavista station on the Monte Generoso railway. In 1886, a concession was granted to the Monte Generoso SA for the construction of a narrow gauge and cog railway to the summit. The line opened on the June 5, 1890, and was originally operated with steam locomotives. The following year, the Tramway Bellavista was opened to link the railway to Doctor Posta's hotel.
However the owning company encountered financial difficulties at various times during the first half of the 20th century. In the 1939, the then owners approached Gottlieb Duttweiler, the founder of the Migros group, for assistance, and in 1941 the railway became part of that group.
In 1954, two diesel locomotives (Hm2/3 1 and 2) were built on the frames of older steam locomotives, followed, in 1957, by two four-axle diesel railcars (Bhm2/4 3 and 4), which allowed a more economical operation. In 1968, two smaller two-axle railcars (Bhm1/2 5 and 6) were introduced. In 1982 the line was electrified and four twin-unit railcars (Bhe 4/8 11 to 14) were supplied by SLM in 1981-2.
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Wikipedia