Bavarian Zugspitze Railway, Rack railway in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.
The Bavarian Zugspitze Railway connects the valley station in Garmisch-Partenkirchen with Zugspitzplatt at 2,650 metres elevation over a route of around 19 kilometres. The rack railway climbs nearly 2,000 metres through mountain terrain and passes through several intermediate stops.
Engineers built the railway between 1928 and 1930 in three construction phases, with the final section opening on 8 July 1930. The project was considered a technical gamble at the time and opened the summit area of Zugspitze by rail for the first time year-round.
The line takes its name from Germany's highest mountain and has carried holidaymakers and locals between valley and high Alps for decades. Travellers use it year-round as direct access to hiking areas and winter sports resorts along the route.
Trains run regularly from the valley uphill and stop at stations such as Hausbergbahn, Kreuzeckbahn and Grainau, where passengers can board and alight. Those heading to the mountain station should allow around an hour for the full journey and expect limited visibility in poor weather.
A long tunnel runs for over four kilometres through the mountain interior and spares the trains steep outdoor ramps. The railway is one of only four rack railways in all of Germany and achieves the greatest elevation difference of any European railway.
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