World’s Steepest Cogwheel Railway

By Linda Tancs

A feat of engineering, the cogwheel railway system was invented by Colonel Eduard Locher-Freuler in the 1880s. It enabled gradients of up to 48 percent and made possible the construction of a railway up Switzerland’s Mount Pilatus. Eliminating the need for a tiresome ascent on foot, the system started out in 1889 as a steam coach and was later electrified in 1937. From Alpnachstad to Pilatus Kulm, the world’s steepest cogwheel railway gives visitors to Lucerne a bird’s-eye view of lush meadows carpeted with Alpine flowers, sparkling mountain streams and imposing rock faces.