Appenzell Railways

Appenzell Railways

Native name	Appenzeller Bahnen
Industry	Public transport
Founded	1988
Website	http://www.appenzellerbahnen.ch/

Appenzell Railways (German: Appenzeller Bahnen, AB) is a Swiss railway company with headquarters in Herisau. It operates a network of railways in the cantons of Appenzell Innerrhoden, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and St. Gallen.

History

The origins of the Appenzeller Bahnen company lies in a number of formerly independent companies and railway lines:^[1]

• The Rorschach–Heiden-Bergbahn (RHB), which opened its line from Rorschach to Heiden in 1875.
• The Appenzellerbahn (AB), which opened its line from Winkeln to Urnäsch via Herisau in 1875, with an extension from Urnäsch to Appenzell in 1886. In 1913, the line from Herisau to Winkeln was replaced by a new line to Gossau.
• The St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell-Bahn (SGA), which opened between St. Gallen and Gais in 1889, and was extended to Appenzell in 1904.
• The Rheineck–Walzenhausen-Bergbahn (RhW), which opened between Rheineck and Walzenhausen in 1896.
• The Trogenerbahn (TB), which opened between St. Gallen and Trogen in 1903.
• The Altstätten-Gais-Bahn (AG), which opened between Gais and Altstätten in 1911.
• The Säntisbahn, which opened between Appenzell and Wasserauen in 1912.

The Appenzellerbahn and Santisbahn merged in 1947, retaining the Appenzellerbahn (AB) identity. The St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell-Bahn and Altstätten-Gais-Bahn merged in 1948, under the name St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell–Altstätten-Bahn (SGA).^[1]

The Appenzeller Bahnen company was formed in 1988, with the merger of the Appenzellerbahn and the St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell–Altstätten-Bahn. In 2006, the Appenzeller Bahnen company merged with the Rorschach–Heiden-Bergbahn, the Rheineck–Walzenhausen-Bergbahn and the Trogenerbahn companies. In legal terms, this merger took the form of the Appenzeller Bahnen company acquiring the other companies.^[1]

Operation

Map of Appenzell Railways lines

Today, the company operates the following railway lines:^[2][3]

• St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell
• Gossau–Appenzell–Wasserauen
• Altstaetten–Gais
• St. Gallen–Trogen
• Rheineck–Walzenhausen
• Rorschach–Heiden

The St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell, Gossau–Appenzell–Wasserauen and Altstätten–Gais lines form a connected network of metre gauge (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in gauge) lines, all electrified at 1500 V DC. The St. Gallen–Trogen line is also of metre gauge and has its St. Gallen terminus immediately adjacent to that of the St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell line, but it is electrified at 600/1000 V DC and there is currently no track connection. The Rheineck–Walzenhausen and Rorschach–Heiden lines are geographically separate from the rest of the network, and are of respectively 1,200 mm (3 ft 11 ¹⁄₄ in) and standard (4 ft 8 ¹⁄₂ in) gauges. The St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell, Altstaetten–Gais, Rheineck–Walzenhausen and Rorschach–Heiden lines all have rack railway sections, whilst the Gossau–Appenzell–Wasserauen and St. Gallen–Trogen lines are adhesion only.^[2][3]

The company also operates a bus service from Teufen, on the St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell line, to Speicher, on the St. Gallen–Trogen line. Night bus services are operated over the routes of the St. Gallen–Gais–Appenzell and St. Gallen–Trogen lines.^[2]

References

1. "Geschichte" [History] (in German). Appenzeller Bahnen. Retrieved 2014-07-02.
2. "Unterwegs" [Route network] (in German). Appenzeller Bahnen. Retrieved 2014-07-02.
3. Eisenbahnatlas Schweiz. Verlag Schweers + Wall GmbH. 2012. pp. 14–15. ISBN 978-3-89494-130-7.

External links

• Media related to Appenzeller Bahnen at Wikimedia Commons
• Appenzeller Bahnen web site