Gornergrat Railway

Gornergrat Bahn

Dangerous, wild and mysterious, the world of the Alps has attracted increasing numbers of people since the 18th century. They wanted to be close to the majestic snow-capped mountains, to discover the wonders of nature and to conquer the high peaks. One mountain in particular, however, fascinated the early adventurers more than any other: the 4485 m Matterhorn. The first ascent was regarded as a sensation at the time.

Almost equally strong was the interest of the first alpinists in the Gornergrat, from where the view takes in 29 four-thousand-meter peaks, many of which can be climbed starting from that baseline. According to history, the first tourist to stand on the Gornergrat was English glacier explorer Professor James David Forbes in 1842. The first photographs of the Gornergrat panorama appeared in the Baedeker Travel Guide in 1856 and in 1862 the Gornergrat finally appeared on the Swiss Dufour Map. Actual tourism on the Gornergrat began to develop around 1870. By 1890, even before completion of the railway to Zermatt, some 8,000 guests had already visited the Gornergrat.

News of the alpine conquests and the opening of traffic links between Visp and Zermatt propelled Zermatt into worldwide fame even then.

The Municipality of Zermatt, Cantonal Parliament and Canton Valais were heavily opposed to the construction of the Gornergrat-Bahn, primarily because of the threat of competition to guides and porters. In a letter dated 29.10.1895, the Federal Council contradicted these fears by pointing out that identical misgivings in the Bernese Oberland had proved to be unfounded.

In 1896 the construction of the huge excursion railway, the GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen, got underway. Because the Gornergrat lies at an elevation of 3089 meters, construction work was possible only during a short period of time, from the melting of the snow until the onset of winter. More than 1000 workers were employed, a majority of them Italians. Over the entire two-year duration of the construction, altogether 2400 workers were involved.

In the logbooks of the first directors and project managers it is recorded that the performance of the workers on the Roten Boden (2700 meters) was only half that of the workers in the valley - on the Gornergrat in some cases apparently it stopped altogether. The fact that the work could proceed at all at such high altitudes was due to the exceptional care taken of the workers by the management and to the good medical supervision and treatment received. The most difficult stretch along the route lay between Zermatt and Riffelalp. Besides the bridge over the Vispe river, a 90 meter long bridge had to be built over the Findelbach gorge. Under pressure of time, the planned building of stone arches was abandoned and an iron framework was chosen to span the piers. From the beginning the gigantic construction was supported by two 48 m high pillars. Within the first four kilometres, four tunnels of various lengths were necessary: 25 m, 45 m, 60 m and 200 m. The first electric cogwheel railway in Switzerland operated on a gear rack system - a system still used today - designed by the engineer Roman Abt.

In January 1896 tenders were invited for the electric plant and the rolling stock.

Five different projects were submitted for the electric plant, four of them using direct current, one of them alternating current. After careful study, a three-phase system was chosen.

The overall installation of the electric plant was assigned to the firm of Brown, Boveri & Cie in Baden. The locomotives and railroad cars were manufactured by the Winterthur locomative factory and the Schweizerische Industriegesellschaft of Neuhausen.

On August 20th, 1898, the GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen went into operation, the first electric cogwheel railway in Switzerland. Thanks to a spirit of innovation and pioneering, a unique tourist attraction was established. The mysterious world of the Alps was made accessible to all. Today's summit station was originally sited 71 metres lower down and was relocated to its present position between 1907 and 1909.

The Gornergrat-Bahn was unable to operate in winter during its first 30 years. Up to and including 1927, the railway ran on about 122 days in the summer months of June to September. In 1928/29, the Visp-Zermatt-Bahn (today's Matterhorn-Gotthard-Bahn) ran from Visp to Zermatt and the Gornergrat-Bahn ran to Riffelalp for the very first time in winter. Zermatt's first winter season - made possible by the two railways - lasted from 21 December 1928 to 28 February 1929. In winter 1938/39, trains travelled to Riffelberg for the first time. Another new ski area was now accessible.

A major obstacle to starting all-year-round operations of the GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen was the very steep incline above Riffelboden. Riffelbord, as it is called, was exposed to avalanches in the lower part and to heavy snowdrifts in the upper region. The work of clearing the tracks in those areas was especially difficult, dangerous and costly. The construction of a 800 m gallery was begun in 1939 and finally completed at the end of World War II. Only then were regular and safe winter operations possible also in the higher regions. In 1942, the Gornergrat-Bahn was able to make its first winter trip to the Gornergrat Kulm (summit). The start of winter operations by the former BVZ and Gornergrat-Bahn allowed winter tourism to develop in Zermatt and prosperity rapidly increased in the Matterhorn village. The "Gornergrat Derby", a ski race from the Gornergrat to Moos above Zermatt, was held from 1946-1967 and was one of Europe's best-known skiing events.

From the start, the management of the GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen has made it their highest goal to provide travel comfort and enjoyment to holiday guests. For this reason the tracks, rolling stock and buildings are regularly renovated and improved still today.

The 2nd section of the Gornergrat-Hohtälli-Stockhorn aerial cableway (3407 m) was built between 1956 and 1958 and, until construction of the Klein-Matterhorn-Bahn, was Switzerland's highest-altitude aerial cableway. The Triftji-Rote Nase skilift was constructed in 1965 followed by the Hohtälli-Rote Nase aerial cableway in 1985/86.

Besides the repeated modernising of the rolling stock and infrastructure, in 1997 the designation "Monte Rosa" was added to the name of Gornergrat-Bahn, which is now called GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen.

In the anniversary year of 1998 the GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen added a new cableway service running from Gant to Hohtälli (cabin capacity 125 persons), making the excursions to the Gornergrat yet another memorable experience.

Tourist attractions have been improved in a sustainable manner, with successive expansion such as new snow-making facilities and a more modern reception and ticketing system.

The ticket hall at the Zermatt valley station was renovated in 1999, improving services and making the facility more customer- friendly.

The Rotenboden-Riffelberg sledge run was opened in 2000 to the delight of all sledging fans.

Highlights of 2001 were the re-opening of the Riffelalp tram to Riffelalp Resort, steam -train trips from Zermatt to Findelbach and the successful trial runs of the open-air carriages from Zermatt to the Gornergrat. These have been a regular attraction since 2002.

In October 2001, the GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen Executive Board approved the transfer of its sport sector (aerial cableways, ski lifts etc.) to the Zermatt Bergbahnen AG, crediting it for an appropriate stake in share capital. All sports sector activities were taken over by the new company as of 1 January 2002. The GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen remains as a separate company and continues to operate the cogwheel railway to the mountain as its core business.

In April of 2003, planning approval was granted for the replacement construction of the Riffelalp station. The railway station – newly modified to cope with the increased demands placed on it by the Hotel Riffelalp Resort – was opened in December 2004.

In September 2003, the Board of Directors together with the company management passed the decision to acquire 4 new two-car trainsets. The new trainsets will enable a higher travel speed and reduce the Zermatt-Gornergrat travel time to under 30 minutes. The new train configurations will be phased into use in the Gornergrat Railway at the end of 2006.

In July of 2004, the Civic Community of Zermatt and Gornergrat-Monte Rosa-Bahnen AG founded the "Gornergrat Experience AG" which has its head offices in Zermatt. The purpose of this company is the development, promotion and realisation, as well as the operation of tourism attractions on the Gornergrat. It is planned for the experience value of the Gornergrat from the valley station up to the summit to be raised in steps, with the objective of establishing a unique, totally experienceable excursion destination. The first stage has seen a rebuilding of the mountain station of the Gornergrat Railway and its re-opening in December 2004. Visitors are now able to purchase numerous mementoes in the souvenir shop in the railway station. In the summer of 2005, the renovation of the “Kulm Gornergrat” hotel and the restaurant was commenced. This work includes the reconstruction of its rooms, which, when finished, will all have views of the Matterhorn and a shower and WC. A new feature is the integration of a shopping mall in the building. Access to the hotel has been facilitated since December 2005 by 3 passenger lifts.

On the 1st April 2005, a name change resolution was passed at the General Meeting. The GGB Gornergrat-Monte Rosa Railways have been known as the Gornergrat Railway since this date.

On the 20th October 2005, the General Meetings approved the integration of the Gornergrat Railway into the BVZ Holding. Die BVZ Holding is the majority shareholder of the Matterhorn Gotthard Railway. The closer ties will strengthen the attractiveness of the range of services offered by both companies