★ 4K 🇨🇭Realp - Furka - Oberwald rack railway diesel cab ride, Switzerland [08.2021] 700 meter climb

The line we're looking at today used to be the heart of the Furka Oberalp railway (FO), a narrow gauge rack railway connecting the SBB station of Brig in the canton of Wallis with the RhB network in Disentis/Mustér, with a branch line connecting to Göschenen of the Gotthard railway.
Construction of the line started in 1911. As a result of World War I, funds and workers were no longer available, putting a stop to progress. In 1926, the rest of the line was finally finished.

Due large amounts of snow and the danger of avalanches, the line had to be closed through winter months. This included removing catenary wires and other pieces of infrastructure prone to damage, closing the tunnels and even folding a specially designed bridge down into the valley. The viaduct which once stood in its place was destroyed by an avalanche in 1916 before a train even got to drive on it.

The high costs involved with this procedure, as well as the inconvenience of the line being divided for 5 to 6 months of the year led to the development of the Furka base tunnel. This was completed in 1982, upon which the mountain pass was decommissioned and planned to be removed.

Thankfully, railway fans formed an association, aiming to preserve the line, which they were successful in. Finally by 2010, the line had been restored to the extent that trains could once again travel all the way from Realp to Oberwald.

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