Gruyère–Fribourg–Morat railway

Bulle–Romont
Overview
Owner	Transports publics Fribourgeois
Line number	254
Termini	Bulle; Romont
Technical
Line length	18.2 km (11.3 mi)
Number of tracks	1
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrification	15 kV/16.7 Hz AC overhead catenary
Maximum incline	2.5%
Route map
	TPF line to Châtel-Saint-Denis-
	Palézieux
	Vuadens-Nord
	closed 2011
	Rueyres-Treyfayes
	closed 2011
	Source: Swiss railway atlas[1]

Palézieux–Bulle–Montbovon
Overview
Owner	Transports publics Fribourgeois
Line number	253, 256
Termini	Bulle; Broc-Fabrique
Technical
Line length	367 km (228 mi)
Number of tracks	1
Track gauge	1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)
Electrification	900 v DC overhead catenary
Maximum incline	3.2%
Route map
	6.8
	0.0
	CEV to Saint-Légier
	closed 1969
	Source: Swiss railway atlas[1]

Bulle–Broc
Overview
Owner	Transports publics Fribourgeois
Line number	253
Termini	Bulle; Broc-Fabrique
Technical
Line length	5.4 km (3.4 mi)
Number of tracks	1
Track gauge	1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)
Electrification	900 v DC overhead catenary
Maximum incline	5%
Route map
	TPF line to Châtel-Saint-Denis-
	Palézieux
	Source: Swiss railway atlas[1]

The Gruyère–Fribourg–Morat railway (GFM) was established with the merger in 1942 of two standard gauge and one 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 ³⁄₈ in) gauge railways running mainly within the Swiss canton of Fribourg. It was officially called the Compagnie des Chemins de fer fribourgeois[2] ("Fribourg Railway Company"). The company also operated numerous regional buses in the same area. After a merger with Fribourg city transport, the company was renamed Transports publics fribourgeois/Freiburgische Verkehrsbetriebe (TPF).

The company was created on 1 January 1942 from the merger of metre-gauge Chemins de fer électriques de la Gruyère ("Electric Railways of the Gruyère"; CEG), the standard-gauge Fribourg-Ins Railway (Chemin de fer Fribourg–Morat–Anet; FMA) and the also standard gauge Bulle-Romont Railway (Bulle-Romont-Bahn; BR). On 1 January 2000, the GFM merged with the Transport en commun de Fribourg (Friborg Community Transport; TF) to form Transports Publics Fribourgeois (TPF).

Between 1929 and 1932, the CEG also operated the Fribourg–Farvagny trolleybus system, an early trolleybus operation, which was taken over from the Compagnie des omnibus électriques Fribourg–Farvagny, before the whole company merged into the CEG in 1930.

Metre-gauge lines

A push-pull train of the GFM in Montbovon (Be 4/4 151 and control car Bt 254)

The narrow gauge network of the GFM is about 48 km long and has a gauge of 1000 mm and has been electrified since its opening.

Bulle is the centre of operations with depot, workshops and, within its modern station, the connection between the metre and standard gauge lines as well as many bus lines. The GFM has a connection in Montbovon to the metre-gauge network of the Montreux Oberland Bernois Railway (Montreux-Berner-Oberland-Bahn; MOB), which allows the exchange of rolling stock. Until 1969, Châtel-St-Denis was also reached by a line of the CEV from Vevey.

The railway operates a basic hourly frequency on all its lines using a fleet of electric railcars with driver trailers. The oldest operational class is Be 4/4 dating from 1903 which are, nowadays used on the special trains in conjunction with visits to the chocolate factory at Broc, or on special excursions. These usually, subject to demand, work with an elderly passenger coach as trailer. Normal services are in the hands of either class Be 4/4 single cab power units built in 1977 or double ended BDe 4/4 built in 1972 coupled to single end driving trailer cars (class Bt) to form two-coach sets or double ended class BDe 4/4 units built by Ateliers de Constructions Mécaniques de Vevey (ACMV) / ABB in 1992 (no's 121 to 124 inclusive) which work on their own on lightly loaded trains or with driving trailers by the same makers. For (school) peak traffic, some more driving trailers may be added. The line was home to just two main line electric locomotives, Class GDe 4/4, built by SLM / BBC in 1983 and which are identical to the Class 6001 of the Chemin de Fer Montreux-Oberland- Bernoise. These are No. 101, named "Ville de Bulle" and No. 102, named "Neirivue". They were usually used on workings with standard gauge wagons loaded on transporter bogies or ballast hopper trains originating from Grandvillard. The company has also in its stocklist two vintage electric shunting locomotives, Class Te 2/2, No's 11 and 12, built by Oerlikon in 1912. One of these is usually to be found at Bulle in connection with the wagon transfer between standard and metre gauge, the other at Montbovon.

In August 2012, GFM, together with the BAM, the MOB and Travys, called tenders for 17 narrow-gauge trains. It was announced that Stadler had won the contract for CHF 150 million in March 2013. TPF will be supplied with six three-unit sets with a continuous output of 1340 kW and a top speed of 100 km/h. The first trains will be delivered in early 2015 and will replace older stock.[3][4]

History

The first section from Châtel-Saint-Denis to Palézieux was commissioned by the Chemin de fer Châtel–Palézieux (Châtel–Palézieux Railway; CP) in 1901. Another railway company was established, initially called the Chemin de fer Châtel–Bulle–Montbovon (CBM), but called the Chemins de fer Electriques de la Gruyère (Electric Railway of the Gruyère; CEG) from 1902. It opened the line from Châtel-Saint-Denis via Bulle and Gruyères to Montbovon between 1903 and 1904. It took over the CP in 1907. A branch line was opened in 1912 from Bulle to Broc, where it connects to the Cailler (now Nestlé) chocolate factory. The originally planned extension of this line to Fribourg was not built because of the First World War. After the opening of the motorway in the late 1970s, a high-speed bus route was established on the route between Bulle and Fribourg, which operated until 2011.

Fribourg-Ins Railway

The Fribourg–Ins railway (Chemin de fer Fribourg–Morat–Anet) is a 32 km-long standard-gauge line from Fribourg via Murten (French: Morat) to Ins (French: Anet). The former Chemin de fer Fribourg–Morat company opened the section from a junction on the Fribourg–Yverdon railway at Givisiez to Murten on 23 August 1898. The operations was carried out with rolling stock and personnel of the Jura–Simplon Railways (JS). In 1901, the company changed its name to the Compagnie du Chemin de fer Fribourg–Morat–Anet. The construction of the Muntelier-Löwenberg–Ins extension began in February and operations started on 1 May 1903. The entire railway line was electrified with a side-contact third rail system, using direct current, on 23 July 1903. Over the years, the FMA used voltages between 750 and 900 volts. With the progressive electrification of the surrounding SBB lines, the FMA was finally re-electrified with alternating current supplied via overhead line. Operations commenced under 15 kV 16⅔ Hz on 12 August 1947.

Bulle–Romont line

The Bulle-Romont Railway (BR), (French: Chemin de fer Bulle–Romont) is the oldest part of the entire network. The 18 km-long standard gauge railway line from Romont, standard gauge railway line was opened on 1 July 1868 to Bulle station on the Lausanne–Fribourg–Bern Railway (LFB), which was opened on 4 September 1862 and is now part of the SBB. The railway initially had no own rolling stock, but contracted its management to the LFB and its successor. It was not until 1929 that the stations were opened; passenger operations, for which two steam locomotives and three passenger coaches were acquired from other railways, commencing in 1934. After the merger, which was mainly intended to obtain federal subsidies under the Privatbahnhilfegesetz (private railways assistance act), electrification was tackled and electrical operations commenced on 8 May 1946.

Like the metre gauge the standard gauge lines are operated on an hourly timetable and again with electric units and driving trailers. These were formerly operated with 1964/5 built stock constructed by a consortium of SIG / SWS / BBC / Oerlikon / SAAS.

At the end of 2010, it was decided to extend train services from Bulle to Bern via Fribourg at the December 2011 timetable change. The line between Bulle and Romont had to be completely renovated for this.[5] During the reconstruction work, operations on the line continued except between 11 July and 10 December 2010. During this time, the infrastructure of the line was adapted to the new operations. Vuisternens-devant-Romont, Sâles and Vaulruz-Nord were converted to crossing loops, which replaced interlockings. The tracks are designed allow coupled sets of two FLIRT sets to operate. All intermediate stations were closed, some of the public facilities were removed and the tracks were fenced.[6]

Livery

Most of the trains are still painted in a grey livery with a broad orange band below the windows, marked "La Gruyere". In 2004 the first of the repainted units were seen on the line in a plain white livery with the area around the driving cab, a "large dot" pattern along the body side and "tpf" lettering in cherry red.

References

Notes

Eisenbahnatlas Schweiz [Swiss railway atlas]. Schweers + Wall. 2012. pp. 30, 42, 72. ISBN 978-3-89494-130-7.
"Enty for the GFM/TPF" (in German). Swiss Company Register. Archived from the original on 17 December 2015. beim Eidg. Amt für das Handelsregister
Stadler (2013). "Joint Purchase of EMUs by four Swiss Operators". Railvolution (2): 8.
"Des trains Stadler pour la clientèle de 4 compagnies romandes" (PDF) (Press release) (in French). stadlerrail.com. 13 March 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2013. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
Rellstab, Mathias (2010). "Direkte Züge Bulle–Fribourg–Bern ab 2011". Schweizer Eisenbahn-Revue (in German). Minirex (2): 101. ISSN 1022-7113.
Rellstab, Mathias (2012). "Direktverbindung Bulle–Fribourg–Bern in Betrieb". Schweizer Eisenbahn-Revue (in German). Minirex (2): 102–103. ISSN 1022-7113.

Sources

Belloncle, Patrick; Metz, Jean (1992). Les chemins de fer fribourgeois, 50 ans GFM (in German). Breil-sur-Roya, France: Les Editions du Cabri. ISBN 2-908816-02-4.
Wägli, Hans G. (2010). Schienennetz Schweiz und Bahnprofil Schweiz CH+ (in German). Zürich: AS Verlag. ISBN 978-3-909111-74-9.
Willen, Peter (1972). Lokomotiven der Schweiz 2, Schmalspur Triebfahrzeuge (in German). Zürich: Orell Füssli Verlag.

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[Eisenbahnatlas-1] Eisenbahnatlas Schweiz [Swiss railway atlas]. Schweers + Wall. 2012. pp. 30, 42, 72. ISBN 978-3-89494-130-7.

[2] "Enty for the GFM/TPF" (in German). Swiss Company Register. Archived from the original on 17 December 2015. beim Eidg. Amt für das Handelsregister

[3] Stadler (2013). "Joint Purchase of EMUs by four Swiss Operators". Railvolution (2): 8.

[4] "Des trains Stadler pour la clientèle de 4 compagnies romandes" (PDF) (Press release) (in French). stadlerrail.com. 13 March 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2013. Retrieved 12 September 2019.

[5] Rellstab, Mathias (2010). "Direkte Züge Bulle–Fribourg–Bern ab 2011". Schweizer Eisenbahn-Revue (in German). Minirex (2): 101. ISSN 1022-7113.

[6] Rellstab, Mathias (2012). "Direktverbindung Bulle–Fribourg–Bern in Betrieb". Schweizer Eisenbahn-Revue (in German). Minirex (2): 102–103. ISSN 1022-7113.