Wuppertal Suspension Railway

The Schwebebahn opened in 1901 and still runs, carrying about eighty thousand passengers a day on thirteen and a half kilometres of route, of which roughly ten kilometres hang over the Wupper river; the valley was too narrow and built up for a conventional line, so the track was hung above the water on a steel framework. Cars are suspended below the rail and swing on curves. In 1950 a circus elephant named Tuffi was put aboard as a publicity stunt, panicked, went through the side and fell into the river, surviving with minor injuries; the incident is still local shorthand for a bad idea.

History

In 1824 the Briton Henry Robinson Palmer presented a horse-drawn single-rail suspension railway, which the industrialist Friedrich Harkort championed for carrying coal, and on 9 September 1826 Elberfeld's councillors discussed it, but the plan fell to opposition from carters and mill owners. In 1887 Elberfeld and Barmen set up a commission for an elevated railway, in 1894 they chose the system of the Cologne engineer Eugen Langen, and construction began in 1898; Emperor Wilhelm II rode a trial run on 24 October 1900, and the line opened in sections, from 1 March and 24 May 1901 to the eastern terminus at Oberbarmen on 27 June 1903, using some 19,200 tonnes of steel at a cost of 16 million gold marks (Wikipedia, Wuppertal Schwebebahn).

What you'll find

• The hanging cars - carriages suspended below the rail, swinging on curves.
• The river route - ten kilometres of track above the Wupper itself.
• The 1901 stations - original steel and glass structures on the line.
• The Tuffi story - the 1950 elephant incident, marked in the city.

When to go

Year-round; it is a working commuter line, so peak hours are crowded. The full route takes about half an hour end to end and costs a normal transit fare.

What to expect

It is public transport, not an attraction, and runs to a timetable with maintenance closures. The valley it crosses is industrial. Seats fill at rush hour.

Nearby

The Neanderthal museum lies west; Solingen is south.

Key facts