The locomotives of the Brienz Rothorn Railway

On 15 October 1889, under the leadership of the manufacturer Karl Brück and probably on the initiative of engineer Alexander Lindner, some citizens of Brienz submitted a concession application for a cogwheel railway to the Brienzer Rothorn. Just 65 days (!) after the application was submitted, the National Council and Council of States gave their approval for the construction of the railway. Building contractor Theodor Bertschinger from Lenzburg soon joined the initiators. Today, he and Alexander Lindner are regarded as the builders of Brienz Rothorn Railway. Around 700 workers – mainly from Italy – were involved in the construction of Brienz Rothorn Railway . Even today, various now local names in our region commemorate the construction of the railway. The railway was built within 16 months – an extraordinary achievement! The total cost of the railway – project costs, construction management, construction interest, land acquisition, line including substructure and tracks, buildings, points, water stations, four locomotives, four passenger carriages, two goods wagons, station and depot inventory – was calculated at CHF 2.2 million.

The railway was officially opened on 16 June 1892. However, the start of the new attraction in the Bernese Oberland did not go quite as planned. The 12’000 guests predicted by Alexander Lindner in the worst-case scenario were not nearly reached at the beginning. The poor financial situation drove those responsible to found a public limited company in 1900. The business continued to make deficits – later, wars in South Africa and China, high coal prices and the continuing lack of a rail link between Brienz and Interlaken led to the poor operating result. In 1908, the air pressure of a large dust avalanche severely damaged the Mülibach bridge, causing unforeseen costs. Bad weather, a tense political situation, the stock market and economic crisis, high inflation and increased competition led to a decline in frequency and an operating deficit.

When the First World War broke out in 1914, the number of visitors fell dramatically and all the staff were made redundant. The Brienz Rothorn Railway was “mothballed” – it was on the brink of collapse and the demolition of the facility was seriously discussed. However, this was successfully prevented time and again. Above all, the people of Brienz stood behind their railway. However, it was to be several years before the Brienz Rothorn Railway was able to run at full steam again. This slumber is the reason why the BRB has not been electrified to this day. Almost all other mountain railways were electrified during this time.

The municipality of Brienz had set up a committee with the aim of reviving the dormant railway. With new capital and a great deal of optimism, operations were resumed to Rothorn Kulm in June 1931. Tourism in the Bernese Oberland developed rapidly, especially after the Second World War. The Brienz Rothorn Railway also benefited from this until the profitability of the railway became increasingly poor. The operation of the railway was costly and could hardly keep up with the new competitors – the electrified mountain railways. On peak days, there was also a lack of transport capacity. Many guests had to be left standing. People no longer believed in the future of the steam cogwheel railway. In the 1960s, cable car construction boomed throughout Switzerland. An efficient and, compared to Brienz Rothorn Railway, much more economical cable car was built to almost every vantage point. In 1958, it was decided at the general meeting to demolish the cogwheel railway and replace it with a more efficient aerial cableway. But now the people of Brienz got back into action. A committee was formed to oppose the demolition of the steam cogwheel railway. They were successful and the decision to demolish it was withdrawn. The problem remained the lack of transport capacity and the expensive steam operation. Attempts were made to procure new, more economical steam locomotives. However, this was not possible in the 1970s; no locomotive factory was interested in further developing steam locomotives. The temporary solution to the problem was the procurement of diesel locomotives.

In 1991, Ernst Streule founded the patrons’ association steam friends of Brienz Rothorn Railway to promote and preserve steam operation. To achieve this purpose, the association supports the costly renovation of the steam locomotives, important renovations on the line, supports infrastructure projects, carries out collections and supports advertising measures. The association forms an important basis for the five-monthly steam operation and regular use of historic rolling stock. In order to finance the most important and decisive investment project “Aktion 5 S” (for ballast, sleepers, rails, poles and retaining walls), the association collected donations from 2009 to 2018. The renovation of the line is a basic prerequisite for the renewal of the federal concession and therefore very important for the future of the railway. The total costs for the replacement and renovation are estimated at around CHF 7.6 million. Since 2009, several hundred meters of track have been renovated each year – mostly at night so that daily steam operations are not affected during the season. All removed material (rails, sleepers, ballast) was taken back from the line to Brienz so that no empty runs could occur.

On 29 September 1969, the federal government granted the Brienz Rothorn Railway the concession for the railway infrastructure and passenger transport for the next 50 years. This was a milestone, as rail operations were legally secured for the coming decades. In December 2019 – around 50 years later – the time had come again and the renewal of the concession was approved. Achieving this goal involved a huge amount of work, as numerous conditions had to be met for the new concession. For example, the entire route was renovated as part of the major “Aktion 5 S” project.

The history of the Brienz Rothorn Railway is heavily influenced by snow clearing (snow breaking). In the early years of the railway, up to 70 men were employed every year to clear the snow. As welcome as the extra income was for many Brienz families at the time, this expense item was a burden on the railway’s operating accounts. A snow blower was used for the first time in 1951. Even though some initial problems had to be solved, mechanization prevailed here too. Today, snow clearance is carried out with a modern wheel-driven snow blower. In addition, powerful snow groomers are used for pre-clearing and for pushing off the snow masses. This makes snow clearing much more economical and, thanks to the time saved, the time at which the route is opened can be better planned.