I have read with great interest about the above railway and it's running or not running of steam trains. I have just returned from Austria where the Achenseebanh has celebrated it's 125th Anniversay, 1889-2014. The Achenseebahn is also a cog railway (Zahnradbahn) which has been running steam trains for the past 125 years and is still using the original steam engines and rolling stock. The Achenseebahn's sheds are in Jenbach, Austria where the OBB mainline runs through and also close by is the Zillertalbahn which opened in 1902 and also stills runs steam trains. There is talk of electrifying both the AB and ZB sometime in the future. If anyone wants pictures please let me know. Well worth a visit.
Kenneth G Williamson
Edinburgh
Scotland
The big gain for the Cog Railway management is speed. The biodiesel trains run at about 7 MPH compared to the steamers 4. It takes over an hour to get a steam engine to the top, while the biodiesels have done it in less than 40 minutes. For safety reasons, the descent is still regulated to be near 4 MPH. The Cog Railway is making some track changes to take advantage of this in setting schedules.
Surely it is the enjoyment of seeing a steam loco working hard climbing the mountain rather than speed? The Achenseebahn takes 45 minutes to reach the summit at Seespitz. There is talk that if electric trains are run this will reduce to 30 minutes but this good be boring.
The vast majority of customers ride the Mt. Washington Cog Railway for the view, the steam locomotives were secondary. Mt. Washington Cog's diesels are custom-built and have the general appearance of oversized farm tractors, which gives them their own visual appeal.
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