Industrial Narrow Gauge Railways

Archive News

NEWS 2010
Updates on information regarding industrial and commercial narrow gauge around Europe.

This section contains details of 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 so help a broad cross section of railways, and countries to be featured. Click on the thumbnail pictures to see the larger picture.

The most recent reports will be at the top

AUSTRIA: February 2010
ÖBB Narrow Gauge (760mm gauge) Some details regarding the future of these railways have been announced. The lines are to be taken over by Land Niederöstereich from January 2011. The disused section from Wieselburg to Mank which lost sevices several years ago (when the Wieselburg to Gresten section was converted to standard gauge) will not reopen. so this section is likley to be taken up now. However, the future for the section from Obergrafendorf to Mank is secure.

A number of railways that had continued to be leased from the ÖBB such as the section to Heidenreichenstein, and Kienberg to Lunz will continue with museum operations and the ÖBB will no longer have any involvement. On the lines north and south of Gmümd where trains were chartered from the ÖBB, it is not yet clear whether this will continue or if another operator will take over.

The Mariazellerbahn is secture and may even have an injection of funding, but the Ybbstalbahn appears to be hit the worst with plans to only allow the Waidhofen to Gstadt section to remain open. so the Gstadt to Ybbsitz and the main section from Gstadt to Lunz are set to close.
(Posted 06.03.10 Source: Today's Railways)

AUSTRIA: January 2010
Emsland-Baustoffwerke, Surwold (750mm gauge) Starting off the year with some belated good news. The 4km long railway serving the sand pits at Surwold for the above building firm has been upgraded last year. There is a new loco and wagons, and much of the track appears to have been relaid. This was reported on the German FeldbahnForum site, and it has a number of photos of the new loco and rolling stock.
The new Schöma weighing 18 tonnes is number 6334 built in 2009, class CHL-150 G. The 6 new Mühlhäuser side tipping wagons have a far greater capacity than the previous train of 10 wagons.

The photo below is linked from the FeldbahnForum site, and clicking on the picture will open a new browser window and take you to the photos and information on the site (in German).

(Posted 25.01.10 Source: German Feldbahn Forum)

HUNGARY: January 2010
MÁV Narrow Gauge Line closures (760mm gauge) The long theatened line closures have finally taken place. The last 3 narrow gauge lines operated by the MÁV (at Kecskemét, Niregyháza, and Balatonfenyves) had been under review for many years. The line at Balatonfenyves looks likely to be handed over to the local authorities to operate as a tourist line, but still has only one of the 3 branches running at present. The last train on the Niregyháza line was on the 12th December and this line had already been severely cut back since last October. The last train on the Kecskemét to Kiskörös line was early, on the 11th December due to a derailment that halted services earlier than planned, and services on the Kecskemét to Kiskunmajsa branch are also now closed.
(Posted 25.01.10 Source: Today's Railways)

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Industrial Narrow Gauge Railways