Although a great deal of literature on the various forms of electric transport in and around Wuppertal has already been published, most of it is currently – if at all – only available in antiquarian bookshops (e.g. via ZVAB.de). The constant demand for local transport in the city has now prompted the author and publisher Sven Binder to publish a series of brochures focussing on the pictorial presentation of the subject, which, enriched with additional information, should provide a good overview at an attractive price.
The legendary cogwheel tramway from Barmen to the Toelleturm, which was closed 65 years ago at the beginning of July 1959 against the will of the population and which, probably a novelty in such events, led to fierce protests against politics. This railway line is still remembered today, and an association is helping to keep it alive, but the plans for reconstruction are probably illusory in today’s cost and safety conditions, although it would certainly be another tourist attraction after the suspension railway.
Although the ‘Barmer Bergbahn AG’ operated a whole series of metre-gauge tram lines to and on the southern heights of the Wupper city, the name Bergbahn was primarily used to refer to the cogwheel railway from the valley floor in Barmen to the Toelleturm, a popular excursion destination on the southern heights, which was also only around two kilometres long. From 1894, it also served as a feeder line to the tramway from Toelleturm to Ronsdorf and Müngsten. A veritable transport hub with multi-track facilities as well as depots and workshops for both means of transport was created at the uphill end. In 1927, a standard-gauge line of the Barmer tramway also reached the Toelleturm on an uphill and winding journey and supplemented the rail network at the Toelleturm until it was converted to trolleybus operation in 1959.
The well-designed and printed brochure provides everything worth knowing about the rack railway in 16 small chapters. In addition to numerous photos, maps and plans supplement the text. The technology of the railway and its vehicles are also described. In addition to the black and white photos taken by various photographers, the colour photos from the last months of operation and the farewell day, most of which are printed on full pages, deserve special mention, as only a few transport enthusiasts could afford expensive slide films.
The result is an all-round successful portrayal of this unique mode of transport and a worthy monument to it. Even those who own older publications on the subject should not hesitate to pick it up. The reprint of a city map of Wuppertal from 1937, published at the same time by SBB, which shows all the transport lines in the still young city as a whole, created in 1929 from several locations with the core cities of Barmen and Elberfeld, should also be mentioned at this point.
Author: Sven Binder
Editor: SBB-Verlag
German Text
85 pages in 21.0 x 21.0 cm format, numerous colour and b/w photos, paperback
Price: 24,00 €
ISBN: 978 3910461055
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12.10.2024
