Vall de Núria Rack Railway

Cremallera de Núria
A Stadler GTW train on the adhesion section of the line.
Overview
Locale	Pyrenees in the north of Catalonia
Operation
Opened	March 22, 1931
Owner	Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya
Technical
Line length	12.5 km (7.8 mi)
Track gauge	1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge
Electrification	1500 V DC Overhead line
Maximum incline	15%
Rack system	Abt

Cremallera de Núria
direction to Barcelona-Sants Ribes-enllaç direction to Puigcerdà Ribes-Vila Rialb Queralbs Núria

The Vall de Núria Rack Railway (Catalan: Cremallera de Núria, IPA: [kɾəməˈʎeɾə ðə ˈnuɾiə]) is a mountain railway in the Pyrenees mountains in the north of the Catalonia region of Spain. The line connects Ribes de Freser with Queralbs and Vall de Núria in Ripollès, Girona. As Queralbs is the highest point in the valley reachable by road, the rack railway is – along with the old footpath / mule track – the only way to reach the shrine and ski resort at Núria.

The line opened on March 22, 1931, and has been electrically operated from the start. It became part of the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC) on January 2, 1984 and remains in their ownership. The line connects to the main R3 line at Ribes de Freser, but the stations have separate access.

The line is 12.5 km (7.8 mi) long and has a rail gauge of 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in). The first 5.5 km (3.4 mi) of the line is operated by conventional rail adhesion. The remainder of the line is operated as a rack railway, using the Abt system and with a maximum gradient of 15%. In total the line overcomes a height difference of 1,062 m (3,484 ft). The line is electrified with an overhead supply at 1500 V DC.