Vevey–Montreux–Chillon–Villeneuve tramway

The Vevey–Montreux–Chillon–Villeneuve tramway (VMCV) was a metre gauge electric tramway in the Swiss canton of Vaud. It linked the towns of Vevey, Montreux and Villeneuve close to the shoreline of Lake Geneva, and also served the famous Château de Chillon. The line was formed by a merger of the Vevey–Montreux–Chillon tramway (VMC) and the Chillon–Byron–Villeneuve tramway (CBV).[1]

Vevey–Montreux–Chillon–Villeneuve tramway
A car of the VMC, circa 1890
Overview
StatusClosed and removed
LocaleCanton of Vaud, Switzerland
TerminiVevey
Villeneuve
Stations62
Service
Services1
History
Opened1888
Closed1958
Technical
Line length13 kilometres (8.1 mi)
Track gaugeMetre (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)
Minimum radius25 metres (82 ft)
Electrification600 V, DC, overhead
Maximum incline5%

Vevey–Montreux–Chillon

The Vevey–Montreux–Chillon tramway was opened in 1888, and was the first electric tramway in Switzerland. It used an early electrification method, with twin overhead copper tubes carrying both polarities. The current was collected by a trolley running on these tubes, and pulled by the tramcar. The cars were double-deck, with an open upper deck.[2][3]

Chillon–Byron–Villeneuve

The Chillon–Byron–Villeneuve tramway, effectively an extension of the earlier line but under separate ownership, opened in 1903. It used what had, by then, become the standard tram electrification method of a single overhead cable, with current return via the running rails. The two lines were merged to form the Vevey–Montreux–Chillon–Villeneuve tramway in 1913. The earlier line was rebuilt to use the later electrification method.[3][4]

Technical details

The merged line was single-track and street-running throughout, and was electrified at 600 V DC. It had a length of 13 kilometres (8.1 mi), with 62 stops, a maximum gradient of 5% and a minimum radius of 25 metres (82 ft). It shared a common section, of just 163 metres (535 ft) in length, with the Clarens–Chailly–Blonay tramway (CCB) in the Montreux suburb of Clarens.[3]

Closing and legacy

The tramway closed in 1958, and was replaced by the Vevey–Villeneuve trolleybus line. The owning company survived, and is now, under the name VMCV SA, the principal bus and trolleybus operator in the Vevey and Montreux area.[1][5] One of its cars operated in Detroit from 1988[6] to 2002.[7]

See also

References
  1. "Vevey-Montreux-Chillon-Villeneuve". bahndaten.ch (in German). ViaStoria. Retrieved 2012-09-14.
  2. "Vevey-Montreux-Chillon". bahndaten.ch (in German). ViaStoria. Retrieved 2012-09-14.
  3. "Vevey–Montreux–Chillon–Villeneuve". www.eingestellte-bahnen.ch. Retrieved 2012-09-14.
  4. "Chillon Byron-Villeneuve". bahndaten.ch (in German). ViaStoria. Retrieved 2012-09-14.
  5. "Historique des transports publics" [History of public transport] (in French). VMCV SA. Archived from the original on 2012-08-19. Retrieved 2012-09-14.
  6. "Vintage Swiss Trolley Makes Debut Along Detroit's Riverfront". Passenger Transport. American Public Transit Association. 6 June 1988. p. 11.
  7. "U.S. Streetcar Systems- Michigan". Railway Preservation Resources. Retrieved February 12, 2019.


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