The media response to the visit of a FEDECRAIL delegation to the “Tren de Sóller” in Mallorca in October was enormous. Vice-President Heimo Echensperger and Jacques Daffis as liaison officer to Spain accepted the invitation of the narrow-gauge Mallorcan railway in the northwest of the island.
The private railway company is applying for membership of the European Federation of Museum and Tourism Railways and met with lively media interest locally with this project. “Ferrocarril de Sóller SA” carries more than one million passengers a year, mainly tourists.
It operates the “Tren de Sóller“, a train with historic vehicles on a 27 kilometre section between Palma and Sóller, as well as a five kilometre tramway connected to the Sóller railway station, which leads to the port.
The line was opened in 1912 and electrified in 1929. It is operated by four original electric railcars and original passenger cars too, with the rare track gauge of 914 mm. Also the tram still runs with original vehicles. It was electric from the beginning.
The tram line is operated with the original three tramcars and two trailer cars from 1913. Open side cars from Tranvias de Palma were added, as well as five old trams from Lisbon, whose gauge was adjusted from 900 mm.
During the visit there was a lively exchange of experience between the representatives of the private railway company and FEDECRAIL.
