Gelmer Funicular

The Gelmer Funicular is a cable railway in the canton of Bern, Switzerland. It links a lower terminus at Handegg, in the Haslital (the valley of the upper Aar River), with an upper terminus at the Gelmersee lake.[1][2]

Gelmerbahn
Car on the steepest part of the line
Technical
Track length1,028 metres (3,373 ft)
Track gauge1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge
Maximum incline106%
View down the line
Car just below the upper station

The Gelmerbahn was the steepest funicular in Switzerland and Europe, until the opening of the new Stoos Funicular in 2017. The Handegg terminus of the line is close to the road over the Grimsel Pass. It is accessible by car and by an infrequent PostBus service.[1][2][3] It is technically not a funicular, which has two cars that counterbalance each other, but is propelled by a winch.

History

The funicular was originally built to facilitate the construction of the Gelmersee, a reservoir, constructed in 1926 in order to exploit the hydroelectric resources of the area and was not opened for public use until 2001. The line is owned and operated by Kraftwerke Oberhasli AG (KWO) which owns the power station.[1][2]

Operation

The line operates from the beginning of June through to mid-October, in daylight hours only. It has the following parameters:[1][2]

Number of cars 1
Number of stops 3
Configuration Single track with no passing loop
Track length 1,028 metres (3,373 ft)
Rise 448 metres (1,470 ft)
Maximum gradient 106% (46°41')
Track gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge
Speed 2 metres per second (6.6 ft/s)
Journey time 10 mins
Capacity 24 passengers per car; 60 persons in each direction per hour
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See also

References
  1. "Gelmer Bahn". Funimag. Retrieved 2011-11-04.
  2. "61,061 Handegg - Gelmersee, Innertkirchen, funicular". Swiss Inventory of Ropeways (in German). Swiss Confederation. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  3. "Gelmer Funicular". Grimselwelt. Retrieved 2014-05-13.

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