page_title: Bernina railway
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Bernina railway / History
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Regionalzug auf der Berninalinie zwischen Lagalb und Ospizio Bernina. Die beiden ABe 4/4-Triebwagen (vorne ABe 4/4II, hinten ABe 4/4III) haben mehr als genug Leistung für zwei Personenwagen, daher werden noch zwei Güterwagen mitgeführt. English: Local train on the Bernina line between Lagalb and Ospizio Bernina pulled by two ABe 4/4 multiple units (an ABe 4/4 II leading an ABe 4/4 III). The two multiple units have excess power with only two passenger cars, so some freight is carried along. Español: Tren en la línea de Bernina Express entre Lagalb y Ospizio Bernina tirado por dos unidades de tren ABe 4/4. Las dos unidades tienen un exceso de potencia con sólo dos coches turismos, por lo que lleva algunos vagones de carga. Français&#160;: Train local sur la ligne Bernina Express entre Lagalb et Ospizio Bernina tracté par deux locomotives ABe 4/4. Les deux locomotives sont en excès de puissance avec seulement deux wagons de passagers, si bien que deux wagons de marchandise ont été ajoutés. Italiano: Un treno regionale (con in testa due automotrici ABe 4/4 II e III) sulla ferrovia del Bernina, che collega Tirano a Sankt Moritz, in prossimità del valico alpino svizzero del Bernina. La ferrovia del Bernina è la più alta linea ferroviaria ad aderenza naturale delle Alpi ed è inclusa nell'elenco dei Patrimoni dell'umanità stilato dall'UNESCO Русский: Поезд на линии Berninabahn Ретийской железной дороги в Швейцарии ведут два электровоза. В составе поезда пассажирские и грузовые вагоны.
context_page_description: The Bernina railway is a single-track 1,000 mm metre gauge railway line forming part of the Rhaetian Railway. It links the spa resort of St. Moritz, in the Canton of Graubünden, Switzerland, with the town of Tirano, in the Province of Sondrio, Italy, via the Bernina Pass. Reaching a height of 2,253 metres above sea level, it is the highest railway crossing in Europe and the third highest railway in Switzerland. It also ranks as the highest adhesion railway of the continent, and – with inclines of up to 7% – as one of the steepest adhesion railways in the world. The height difference on the section between the Bernina Pass and Tirano is 1,824 m, allowing passengers to see glaciers and palm trees on the same line.
  On 7 July 2008, the Bernina Railway and the Albula Railway, which also forms part of the RhB, were recorded in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, under the name Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina Landscapes. The whole site is regarded as a cross-border joint Swiss-Italian heritage area.
  Trains operating on the Bernina Railway include the Bernina Express.
context_section_description: In the year following the completion of the Albula Railway in 1904, the Bernina-Bahngesellschaft (BB) was established, with the objective of opening a railway line between St Moritz and Tirano, via the Bernina Pass. After obtaining a concession for such a line in 1906, the BB opened it from 1908 onwards, in several sections: on 1 July 1908 between Pontresina and Morteratasch, and between Tirano and Poschiavo; on 18 August of the same year between Pontresina and Celerina; and on 1 July 1909 between Celerina and St Moritz, and between Morteratsch and Bernina Suot. It was only on 5 July 1910 that the whole line could be opened, upon completion of the most difficult section between Bernina Suot and Poschiavo. The line was electrically operated with DC current from the start. In 1935 the voltage was increased from 750 to 1000 volts.
  Originally, the Bernina Railway was intended for use only in summer, but in 1913/14 the BB commenced winter operations as well.  This development was associated with major weather-related problems, necessitating further erection of avalanche barriers.
  In the first years of its existence, the BB was always on the verge of bankruptcy.  The costs of construction expenditure on the line to 1915 amounted to around 15 million Swiss francs.  Even the introduction of a restaurant car in 1928, and packages for tourists, could not save the little railway from ruin.  Due to its difficult financial situation, it was taken over by the Rhaetian Railway in 1943.
  The RhB modernised the line fundamentally, also for military reasons, and completely renewed the section at the top of the pass.  Previously, the line formation on the north ramp of the Bernina Pass had been laid out in curves giving passengers extensive views, but also lying in the path of avalanche courses.  The new parts of the line cut off those curves, the catenary and the flat bottomed rails of the old formation were removed, but the substructure is still visible in the high mountains.
  Since the mid-1980s, the Rhaetian Railway has been marketing the natural and technical attractions of the Bernina Railway specifically to tourists.  Thus, the section from Pontresina to Tirano forms part of the route of the Bernina Express. In October 2011, it was the first rail line in the world to be photographed and put on Google Street View.
caption: Winter scene near the top of the Bernina Pass.
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon EOS 350D DIGITAL", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "240", "Image YResolution": "240", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS4 Windows", "Image DateTime": "2010:02:09 00:16:42", "Image Artist": "unknown", "Image ExifOffset": "236", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "718", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "4349", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/640", "EXIF FNumber": "10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Shutter Priority", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "100", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2007:03:21 14:34:50", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2007:03:21 14:34:50", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "1165241/125000", "EXIF ApertureValue": "415241/62500", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "17", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3144", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1936", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "1728000/437", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "384000/97", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard"}