The Niesen Funicular is a

funicular railway A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite e ...

in the

canton of Bern The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. ...

, Switzerland. It links a lower terminus, in the village of

Mülenen Mülenen is a village in the Frutigen-Niedersimmental administrative district of the Swiss canton of Bern The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons ...

and adjacent to Mülenen station on the

Lötschberg railway line The Lötschberg is an Alpine mountain massif and usually associated with a major, historically important transit axis of the Alps in Switzerland with, at its core, the Lötschen Pass (german: Lötschenpass, Swiss German: ''Lötschepass''). The mou ...

, with an upper terminus at the summit of the Niesen. The line is owned and operated by the Niesenbahn AG. Construction of the line commenced in 1906, and it opened in 1910. The service stairway for the Niesenbahn funicular is listed by

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

as the longest stairway, with 11,674 steps and a height of . The stairs are usually employee-only, but there is a public run called "Niesenlauf" once a year.

Operation

The line operates from late April to mid November, with cars operating every 30 minutes between 08:00 and 17:00. A 15-minute interval service is provided at busy periods, and evening services are operated on some days. The line comprises two sections, with an interchange station at Schwandegg, and has the following parameters: Niesen-Bahn-Ges

References

External links

*
Official website of the Niesenbahn funicular
{{Coord, 46.639356, 7.69021, type:railwaystation_region:CH, display=title Funicular railways in Switzerland Metre gauge railways in Switzerland Transport in the canton of Bern 1910 establishments in Switzerland