Grafenort – Engelberg Tunnel

Not to be confused with the Engelberg road tunnel in Germany.
Grafenort – Engelberg Tunnel
Overview
Line Luzern–Stans–Engelberg-Bahn
Operation
Opened December 2010
Technical
Construction 2001-2010[1]
Length 4043m
Track gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)
Grade 10.5%
Portal of the tunnel in December 2010

The Grafenort – Engelberg Tunnel is a railway tunnel built on the Luzern–Stans–Engelberg-Bahn, part of the Zentralbahn in Switzerland.[2]

Historically, the Luzern–Stans–Engelberg-Bahn had a very steep 25% incline between Grafenort and Engelberg; replacing this with a more direct tunnel has shortened uphill journey times by 14 minutes, and increased capacity.[3] Thanks to timetable changes, journey times between Engelberg and Zurich/Bern have been shortened by 19 minutes.[4]

Great care had to be taken with risk assessments and mitigation; some surrounding areas are very vulnerable to floods, landslides, or avalanches.[5] Serious flooding in 2005 not only disrupted tunnel construction, but also trapped 1500 tourists in Engelberg, who had to be airlifted to safety.[6][7]

Construction of the tunnel posed several severe technical challenges;[8] this also increased the cost, to 176.5 million CHF. As the tunnel allows the use of longer, faster trains, a new power station has been built to provide additional electrical power.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "Zentralbahn Tunnel Engelberg". Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  2. ↑ "Neuer Steilrampentunnel zwischen Engelberg und Grafenort eröffnet". CASH. Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  3. ↑ "Railway Gazette: Less steep underneath". Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  4. ↑ "Engelberg in Rekordzeit zu erreichen". Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  5. ↑ "Natural Hazards in Engelberg" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  6. ↑ "New Rail Tunnel To Engelberg Opening". Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  7. ↑ "New rail tunnel set to open in Engelberg this month". Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  8. ↑ "Der Engelberg-Tunnel und die Macht des Berges" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  9. ↑ "Im Steilrampentunnel schneller nach Engelberg". Retrieved 2011-02-13.

Coordinates: 46°50′15″N 8°23′09″E / 46.8374°N 8.3857°E / 46.8374; 8.3857

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