!!!Gebirgsbahnen

Alpine Railways: Austria was one of the pioneers in the construction 
of railways in mountain regions; the  Semmering Railway was the first 
alpine railway in the world. Many Austrian experts contributed to the 
development of alpine railways: the engine designers W. Engerth, J. 
Haswell, G. Sigl and K. Goelsdorf, the railway expert A. Negrelli, the 
designer of Semmering railway, K. von Ghega, the tunnelling 
expert, F. Rziha, and the bridge builders G. A. Wayss and J. 
Melan. Alpine railways either cross passes (Brenner railway, 1867) or 
pass through a summit tunnel (Semmering, 1854) through the upper part 
of the mountains; some gradually wind up the slopes of lateral valleys 
to higher regions, with the tunnel close to the pass (1884 Arlberg 
tunnel, 10 km long), some lead through long base tunnels, such as 
the Tauern railway (1905, Tauern tunnel, 8.5 km long) and the 
Karawanken railway (1906, Karawanken tunnel, 8 km long). Other 
important alpine railways are the Mariazell railway (1906, electrified 
1911) and Mittenwald railway (1912) near Innsbruck. In more recent 
times,  Mountain Railways  have been built to meet the demands of 
growing tourism (cog railways, funiculars, cableways and lifts).

!Literature
M. Hoefierer, Die Elektrifizierung der Alpenbahnen, 
doctoral thesis, Vienna 1945; A. Schweiger-Lerchenfeld and E. Born, 
Die Ueberschienung der Alpen (1884), 1983.


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