Wynental and Suhrental railway

The Wynental and Suhrentalbahn (WSB ) is a narrow-gauge private railway in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. It occurs since 2002 along with the bus operation Aarau under the name AAR bus bahn to. The company operates in the region of Aarau and in the valleys of Wyna and Suhre by public transport.

The WSB consists of two routes from Aarau to Menziken in Wynental or after Schöftland in Suhrental. The network is 32.2 km long. A total of 17 communities are developed. Around 5.1 million passengers annually transported (as of end of 2009). The trains run on weekdays and Saturdays to 20 clock every quarter hour, or half hour. Since December 2012, no more goods are transported on the WSB network.

Route

Both trails start in Aarau on the south side of the railway station. Here WSB has its own railway station with a covered platform. Two underpasses serve as a connection to the mainline railway station and the Bahnhofstrasse.

Shortly after leaving the station, the Wynentalbahn runs on the track of the ancient SBB railway Aarau Suhr. In the area of ​​the station clock it runs for a short distance parallel to the train line Zofingen Lenzburg. Between the stations Graenichen Töndler and Bleien Liebegg the distance to the banks of Wyna runs around 100 meters from the main road. Then leads the trackbed next to the main road to Oberkulm. There is a section along a side street to Gontenschwil. After two tight bends of the main road is reached at Zetzwil again. Again after Leimbach follows an independent roads section. Between Reinach north and the railway terminal in Menziken the WSB uses a section of the former SBB line Beinwil - Beromunster.

The Suhrentalbahn leads after leaving the train station of Aarau first through a 260 meter long tunnel and then runs alongside the main road. The road through Unterentfelden and Oberentfelden takes place on a twisty track. When Oberentfelden station the train line Zofingen Lenzburg is at the same level and crossed at right angles. In the long-drawn village Muhen the course was once in the middle of the main street, but since December 2004, a new section in around 50 meters in operation. At the terminus Schöftland place the vault and the maintenance workshop.

History

In 1871, some communities formed a committee, which submitted a license application for two railway lines in Wynental. This should lead to Aarau on Oberkulm to Reinach and of Beinwil about Reinach to Menziken. Both lines should be standard gauge and are navigated by steam locomotives. A year later, the authorities of the Canton of Aargau approved although the project, yet it could not be executed. The main reason was the disagreement about the lines through the narrow valley. Only the section between Beinwil and Menziken was built and opened in 1883, but this by the Seetalbahn (today SBB). The line was extended from 1906 to Münster (today Beromunster ).

In Suhrental, efforts were made to build a railroad. Here, however, it was planned from the start, a narrow gauge, electrically operated railway, which should operate as a tram on the largest part of the route. In 1896, of the firm of Brown, Boveri & Cie. elaborated project received the concession, and soon after the work began. The Aarau- Schöftland -Bahn (AS) took on 19 November 1901 the operation. Meanwhile, those responsible had arrived in Wynental to the conclusion that a narrow gauge tram would be more economical. In January 1903, the construction began. The opening of the Wynentalbahn ( WTB ) between Aarau and Reinach took place on March 5, 1904, their extension to Menziken a few weeks later on May 1. Both railways had their starting point at the station site north of Aarau railway station and were given at the beginning of 1906, a track connection. The extension of the AS via Schöftland out to Kulmerau (connection to the Sursee - Kulmerau -Bahn ) was never realized.

1924 took the WTB its own railway station on the present site south of the SBB railway tracks in operation. This direct connection was lost to the AS that continue perverted by the Aarau city center. The route of middle of the road proved increasingly problematic, which is why since 1945 the two railways were moved step by step on a private Trassee. 1955 city bus operation started in Aarau, the management took place from the beginning by the WTB. On June 24, 1958 merged the AS and the WTB to Wynental and Suhrental train, although the tracks were operationally not interconnected. This was the case until 1967, when the northernmost section of the Suhrentalbahn was repealed by Aarauer downtown and routed in a 260 -meter-long tunnel. Thus, both tracks had their starting point is now on the south side of the railway station.

On the timetable change on 22 May 1977, the railway mail traffic on the Wynental and Suhrentalbahn was ceases and the Zi used for 54 on the Rhaetian Railway and later on the Furka -Oberalp -Bahn ( FO). The DZ 56 was sold to the FO, where he ran as DZ 4354. Today it is used as a generator and baggage car of a tourist train in Madagascar use.

The Eigentrassierung, thus laying the railway track away from the road, made great progress, for example in 1985 a completely changed route in Graenichen. Nevertheless, there were still numerous long tram -like sections. Worried prepared especially the section through the villages Reinach and Menziken in the upper Wynental. On the busy main road, the tracks went middle of the road, partially in oncoming traffic. There were frequent accidents with serious damage to material. In 1991, on the parallel standard gauge line Beinwil passenger was stopped on Lake Beromunster, began planning for the transfer of the WSB series on the now vacant SBB Trassee. The Umspurungs and remediation work started in 1999 on the setting of freight transport. The new section Reinach North Menziken was opened December 15, 2002 finally. Two years later, on 5 December 2004, another important project was opened to traffic, the laying of the Suhrentalbahn in Muhen.

This remained a sizeable section with tram -like character, namely the section Aarau Suhr of Wynentalbahn. The SBB closed on 12 December 2004, the standard gauge, built in 1877 by the National Railway Aarau Suhr for passenger traffic. This was about three hundred meters east of the Suhrer Tramstrasse in which the WSB wrong. The Grand Council of the Canton of Aargau decided unanimously in 2006, the relocation of the WSB to the SBB Trassee. The federal government took over the project to the list of urgent investment for urban transport, whereby 50 % of the construction costs could be paid from the Infrastructure Fund. Work on this section began in 2008 and lasted two years. Since November 22, 2010, the Broad Wynentalbahn operate on the new trackbed.

Vehicle park

  • BSe 4/4 116 (1901 ) lounge car with bar ( Nostalgia vehicle ), 2012 scrapped, sold for stationary use
  • Ex WTB Ce 4/4 1-4 ( 1904) SIG / MFO, all aborted
  • Be 4/4 7-8 (1954 ) sold to Stern & Hafferl transport company, there ET 23111-112
  • Be 4/4 9-14 ( 1965-1966 ) scrapped 2010-2012 still BDt 84
  • Be 4/4 15-27 ( 1978-1979 ) without 18 ( burned ), from 2010 modernized
  • ABe 4/8 ex Be 4/8 28-34 ( 1992-93)
  • 21-25 assembled ABe 4/8 28-32 and 35-39 ( 1992-93) from 2010 from one half WSB 28-32 and 1 half BDWM
  • Bt 71-79 (modification 1978), ex B 41-49 (1965 ), 2009 scrapped bogies for ABt 51-61
  • BDt 80-85 (1965), 2009/2012 scrapped bogies partly for ABt 51-61
  • De 4/4 42 (1904 ) scrapped
  • De 4/4 43-45 (1974 ) 44 2009 canceled after fire damage, 43 and 45 with Be4 / 4 6 2013 canceled
Metre gauge Grade (slope) Suhr, Aargau Teufenthal Hirschthal Unterkulm Leimbach, Aargau Reinach, Aargau Wyna River Beinwil am See Triengen Sursee–Triengen railway Swiss National Railway Grand Council of Aargau
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