Blonay–Chamby museum railway

The Blonay -Chamby, abbreviated BC, French Chemin de fer musée Blonay -Chamby, is the first museum railway in Switzerland. She took at the 1968 to 1966 operated by Chemins de fer électriques Veveysans railway Blonay -Chamby the museum operation. As a supporting organization of the club Blonay -Chamby serve with an annual turnover of CHF 400'000 -. (As of 2013) and the Cooperative Blonay -Chamby, French Chemin de fer musée Blonay -Chamby Société coopérative.

The Blonay -Chamby is a railway transport companies. They travel on the infrastructure of transport Montreux -Vevey - Riviera with a network access license and a federal passenger transport concession between Blonay and Chamby.

History

The association Blonay -Chamby, originally Société pour la création du chemin de fer Touristique Blonay -Chamby, was founded on December 5, 1966. At the founding meeting was attended by 82 people.

On January 25, 1967 hit the first car, a tram motor car, in a museum railway. On June 9, 1967 was the first steam locomotive, this was the G 3/ 3 6 the former Bière -Apples- Morges line.

Parallel to the procurement of vehicles, the association began the re- upgrading of the railway line Blonay -Chamby for museum operations, such as had to be carried out free cutting. The first working drove on 1 July 1967. Permission to railway operation the authorities granted on 1 May 1968.

On 3 July 1968, the cooperative Blonay -Chamby based in Lausanne was entered in the commercial register. Meanwhile, the cooperative referred to only as Chemin de fer musée Blonay -Chamby. Originally it was called Chemin de fer Touristique Blonay -Chamby.

On July 20, 1968 finally reversed the first public museum train. To a specialty of the museum railway developed over the years thematic motto events. So a rail tractors and service Vehicle Festival, a Bernina weekend and a Tram Festival took place, for example 2008.

Museum complex in Chaulin

Above Chaulin arose directly on the railway line to Blonay, called over the years, today's museum area, Chamby - Musée. It consists of the facilities of the museum railway as well as a way to accommodate guests and club members. Street side, the area is only accessible via a non-public road.

1973 First five permanent depot was opened in the rear museum area. Four tracks are stopping and presentation of vehicles, three of which are provided with a contact line, one has a continuous investigation pit. The fifth track left outside on the side of the valley is separated by a partition wall and used as a workshop. It is equipped with a gantry crane. In the back of the hall are sanitary facilities, changing rooms and a stock of spare parts.

In order to stop further vehicles covered can - and thus to reduce the maintenance effort - was taken in 1993, an additional hall at the Chamby side in operation. It is three-pronged and adapted to the local chalet- style, all tracks are electrified. Between the two halls was created in 1998 along with a restaurant terrace which replaced an old barrack.

Was completed, the area in the course of time also by two barracks for club purposes and an open-air facility for coaling and purify the steam locomotives, supplemented by a water tower.

Rolling stock

Vehicles of Blonay -Chamby

The extensive meter gauge rolling stock to the rail line Blonay -Chamby is operated, includes steam locomotives, electric locomotives, EMUs, trams, passenger cars, freight cars, service vehicles and a Dampfschneeschleuder.

Technical Framework

The car park of the museum railway is largely adapted to the standard elements of the traffic through the museum railway meterspurigen the Chemins de fer Adhäsionsnetzes électriques Veveysans (CEV ) and the Montreux-Bernese Oberland Railway ( MOB). This applies with few exceptions for the wheel tire profiles. These exceptions include a part of the tram vehicles, they may be prohibited or restricted because of that ply the route network. The latter may only drive coming to verse - Chez- Robert from Chamby direction.

Wherein the couplings following scheme applies: railway vehicles having a central buffer coupling with a disposed downstream of the central buffer coupling screws. The tram cars, however, feature trumpet couplings type as they are of the Municipal Transport Company Bern ( SVB ) is known.

During the braking system outweighs the vacuum brake. Depending on the holding of origin but there are also few vehicles with air brakes. The tram cars which motor vehicles generally have a dynamic brake, the sidecar, a solenoid brake. The corresponding braking systems must be considered in the consist. Individual vehicles have therefore also continuous brake cables on another brake system.

The electric vehicles are designed for a contact wire voltage of 900 volts DC. On older vehicles with respect to relatively generously dimensioned voltage fluctuations, the related adjustments were minor. The vehicles of municipal and rural street railway companies were designed for 600 volts, those of the meter gauge railway to 750 to 1200 volts. The car park of the former Leuk- Leukerbad railway had been built for operation at 1500 volts.