History of the Forest Railway

The construction of forest railways to open up areas of forest use that are difficult to access reached its peak at the beginning of the 20th century. In Austria, a large number of technically very different forest railway systems were created. The range ranged from the simple runway with animal traction to solidly built routes with passenger traffic. The forest railways were an indispensable means of transport in an almost hundred-year era of forestry development.

In 1974, the last forest railway train in Austria ran between Langau and Lunz am See.

Among the Austrian forest railway companies, the Reichraming forest railway – and especially the Hintergebirgsstrecke – has always occupied a special position due to the size of the network, but also due to the high system standards. Although not open to the general public, it was widely known.

Origin of the Reichraming forest railway

As early as 1912, a simple runway was built in the Weißenbach valley for transporting wood. Little is known about this line, except that it was operated without engine power.

The impetus for the construction of the main line of the forest railway came in 1916, when 70,000 cubic metres of spruce were thrown by the wind in the Brunnbach and Weißwasser areas. Most of the wood was left lying around due to the shortage of workers during the war, and so in 1919 there was a bark beetle disaster, which destroyed one million cubic metres of wood by 1922. From 1919 to 1923, a forest railway with a total length of 22 km was built from Schallau – the old camp and landing site in Reichraming – to Brunnbach through the most affected area along the Pleissabach. Branches into the Weißenbachtal and in the direction of Bäckerlager served as feeder or extension of the main line.

The Hintergebirgswaldbahn

After the Second World War, there was a great demand for raw wood of all kinds. Therefore, in the summer of 1947, the construction of a 15.9 km long branch line of the existing forest railway began from the Mairalm up the "Great Stream" and in 1948 from Weißwasser downstream.

The construction of the forest railway into the Hintergebirge was completed in 1951. In the autumn of this year, a 140m long loading facility was also created opposite the Reichraming railway station for the transhipment from the forest railway wagons to the wagons of the Federal Railway. This could be reached through a rail-level crossing of the forest railway with the Bundesbahn. The new line, known as the "Hintergebirgswaldbahn", was 15,859 km long, had 19 tunnels with a total length of 1922 m and 41 bridges, eight of which were welded sheet metal girder bridges with lengths of 10 – 27 m. The longest tunnel, the Lower Hasel Tunnel, was 339.2 m long. That

The maximum gradient was 32 0/00, the smallest curvature semi-diameter 40 m. The curves were widened on the inside, so that timber up to 20 m in length could be transported.

The forest railway overcame a total difference in altitude of 142 m on the route between Mairalm and Weißwasser with an average gradient of 9 0/00. The annual felling in the areas opened up by the forest railway amounted to around 23,500 cubic metres.

To bring in the wood from the side ditches, feeder roads with a length of 61 km were built. The timber from the side ditches to the forest railway was transported by tractors and trucks, which were transported to the respective location by the forest railway on their own transport wagons.

According to contemporary sources, the development of the Reichraminger Hintergebirge was the most difficult and largest forest development in Austria. All facilities were planned and routed by the forest engineers of the Austrian Federal Forests, and almost all buildings were built by the Federal Forests themselves. About 150 forestry workers found employment through woodwork all year round.

Passenger traffic

The forestry workers were also brought to their workplaces by the forest railway trains. Initially, people who did not belong to the forestry company were not allowed to be transported. A permit for limited public transport issued in 1943 made it possible, for example, for officials of the authorities, doctors, forestry employees and their relatives, timber buyers and participants in educational hikes of forestry schools to ride along.

Staff

The forest railway was professionally managed with service categories like in a railway operation. A recorded number of personnel included 1 plant manager and 1 deputy (in personnel unit dispatcher), 3 locomotive drivers, 1 draisine driver, 1 workshop manager, 2 locksmiths, 1 blacksmith, 1 unskilled worker, 2 railway judges, 4 brakemen, 8 men superstructure. Another source mentions an additional 12 loading workers.

The vehicles

Depending on the changing legal situation, also in the course of the World War and afterwards, motorfeldbahn railcars (from army stocks), steam locomotives (with names "Schallau" and "Brunnbach") and a gasoline-electric railcar were used alternately as traction vehicles.

In passenger transport, closed, heated cars were not available until 1953.

"Double trucks" – two two-axle chassis – with a loading capacity of 8 – 10 tonnes were used for timber transport; half of these were equipped with handbrakes.

The forest railway operation

Standard travel times for freight trains were:

The maximum speed of the line was 15 km/h, the braking distance 60 m. On the wing tracks, including the Schallau – Reichraming station, only 5 km/h were permitted, as was the case for all points and curve radii of less than 40 m.

Braking was done manually by the brakeman. The diesel locomotives were manned by the engine driver alone, but the train driver had to be familiar with the locomotive's equipment to the extent that he could step in in emergencies and prevent accidents.

On the evening of the respective operating day, the dispatcher set the driving program for the following day in front of the assembled team.

The end of the forest railway