Rhaetian Railway

46°24′32″N 10°1′11″E / 46.40889°N 10.01972°E / 46.40889; 10.01972

Rhaetian Railway
RhB train approaching the Bernina Pass.
Overview
Native name	Rhätische Bahn, Ferrovia retica, Viafier retica
Status	operating
Owner	Rhätische Bahn AG
Locale	Canton of Grisons, Switzerland, Lombardy, Italy
Stations	102
Website	www.rhb.ch
Service
Type	Commuter and heavy rail
Services	10
Ridership	12 Million per year
History
Opened	1888
Technical
Line length	385 km (239 mi)
Character	Mountain railway
Track gauge	1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)
Electrification	11 kV 16+2⁄3 Hz (322 km) 1000 V DC (62 km, Bernina line)
Operating speed	100 km/h (62 mph)
Highest elevation	2,254 m (7,395 ft)
Route map

The Rhaetian Railway (German: Rhätische Bahn; Italian: Ferrovia retica; Romansh: Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur,^[1] the RhB operates all the railway lines of the Swiss canton of Grisons, except for the line from Sargans to the cantonal capital, Chur, which are operated by Swiss Federal Railways (SBB CFF FFS), as well as the line from Disentis/Mustér to the Oberalp Pass and further on to Andermatt, Uri, which is operated by Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB). Inaugurated in 1888 and expanded from 1896 onwards in various sections, the RhB network is located almost entirely within Grisons, with one station across the Italian border at Tirano.

The Rhaetian Railway serves a number of major tourist destinations, such as St. Moritz and Davos. One of the RhB lines, the Bernina Railway, crosses the Bernina Pass at 2,254 metres (7,395 ft) above sea level and runs down to Tirano, Lombardy in Italy.

In 2008, the RhB section from the Albula/Bernina area (the part from Thusis to Tirano, including St. Moritz) was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Albula-Bernina line is the first rail line in the world to be photographed and put on Google Street View.^[2] The line also operates several historic trains on the network.^[3]