Industrial Narrow Gauge Railways

NEWS 2021
Updates on information regarding industrial and commercial narrow gauge railways around Europe.

This section contains updates on narrow gauge sites (industrial/commercial, not preserved) still operating, or news regarding closures confirmed from recent vists or the railway press. Please feel free to contribute to these pages and ensure a broad cross section of railways and countries are featured. Click on the thumbnail pictures to see a larger picture.

The most recent reports will be at the top

AUSTRIA: April 2021
Zillertalbahn
(Gauge: 760mm)

At the start of the year trial journeys were being run with timber trains for the sawmills at Fügen. Aparrently, the railway has specially adapted timber wagons built for this purpose. A new goods loading terminal has been constructed at Jenbach. These trials have been successfull and so from mid May regular timber trains will start once again. Especially during summer the traffic in and out of the Ziller valley is awful to say the least and it appears that the Tyrolean state Goverment have finally woken up to the benefit of moving over 20,000 lorry journeys per year off the roads, and onto the railway. 30 new wagons have been purchased by the Zillertalbahn for this purpose.

A photograph of the back of the transfer sidings at the back of Jenbach station in 2015, approx 2 years after the timber/freight services had ceased.

(Posted 26.04.2021 Source: unsertirol24.com)

ENGLAND: April 2021
Sylvasprings Watercress
(Gauge: 18ins)

A walk was taken alongside the watercress beds at Sylvasprings last and confirmed that the loco was still in use with the three flat wagons. They were parked up ready for use.

Several of the large beds are difficult to access by any other means so the narrow gauge railway is still the ideal method of transport, even if it now only used on a short section of the original length.

(Posted 28.04.2021 Source: Keith Lanham)

AUSTRIA: January 2021
Lokalbahn Mixnitz
(Gauge: 760mm)

Two photographs showing details of a belated report only recently received of the line at Mixnitz. It was visited in August 2020 and found to be working, with loco E4 in charge of the trains to the factory near St Erhard. Two return workings were observed. In recent times the operations here have been reducing so it is pleasing to see it still transporting magnasite. The line and the rolling stock was seen to be well maintained and there are some new goods wagons which are former ÖBB SSm or OOm wagons, converted to carry large bags of magnasite.

(Posted 01.01.2021 Source: Patrick Aulbach)

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Industrial Narrow Gauge Railways