Mühleggbahn

Mühleggbahn is a funicular in the city of St. Gallen, Switzerland. It leads from a lower station south of the old town, near the abbey, at 676 metres (2,218 ft), to Mühlegg at 474 metres (1,555 ft) in St. Georgen.^{[3][note 1]} The line is 323 metres (1,060 ft)^[3] long and functions as an inclined elevator with a single car, and 287 metres (942 ft) in a tunnel. The trip takes about 90 seconds.^[6]

Mühleggbahn
Car at upper station
Overview
Other name(s)	Standseilbahn St. Gallen-Mühlegg; Drahtseilbahn St. Gallen-Mühleck
Status	In operation
Owner	Mühleggbahn AG
Locale	St. Gallen, Switzerland
Termini	"St. Gallen, Mühlegg Talstation" at Mühlenstrasse "St. Gallen, Mühlegg" at St. Georgen-Strasse 43
Stations	2
Website	muehleggbahn.ch
Service
Type	Funicular (inclined elevator since 1975)
Route number	2710 [1] (earlier: 1710, 115c [2])
Operator(s)	Verkehrsbetriebe St. Gallen (since 1953)
Rolling stock	1 for 38 passengers[3] (since 2018); 1 for 30 (2004-2018); 1 (1975-2004); 1 for 60 [4](1950-1975); 2 (1893-1949)
History
Opened	14 December 1893 (131 years ago) (1893-12-14)
Concession	1889
Rack-railway	1950-1975
Enhancements	2004, 2018
Technical
Number of tracks	1 (with passing loop before 1949)
Track gauge	1,200 mm (3 ft 11+1⁄4 in)
Electrification	1975 as funicular, 1949 as rack railway (1893-1949: water counterbalancing)
Highest elevation	747 m (2,451 ft)
Maximum incline	22.8%

The funicular is owned by "Mühleggbahn AG" and operated by Verkehrsbetriebe St. Gallen.^[7]

History

When opened in 1893, the line worked as a water counterbalancing funicular with two cars and a passing loop. Water was drawn from Mühleggweiher at its upper station.^[7]

The system was replaced in 1950 with a rack railway^[4] that operated until 1975.^[7][8][9]

On 7 May 1975 (1975-05-07), it was reopened as a funicular.^[8] The car was replaced in 2004^[7] and 2018, tracks in 2018.

• 
  Lower station with sign "Bangor" (2017)
• 
  Lower station (2022)
• 
  Upper station (2022)

Description

The Mühleggbahn is a funicular with one car which connects the two stations in a fully automatic trip every five minutes. If the car is not at the station, it can be requested with a button. Most of the 316 meter long route goes through a tunnel with a gradient of 208 to 228 per mile. The elevator pulls the car at a maximum speed of 4.8 meters per second with a maximum of 38 passengers. The travel time is approximately 90 seconds.

Notes

1. ^[5] notes 673 m and 742 m (1999)

Further reading

• Stadelmann, Werner (1993), 100 Jahre Mühleggbahn St. Gallen 1893-1993 (in German), St. Gallen: Ostschweiz Druck + Verlag AG