Industrious Swiss Steam

In 1975 a few industrial locations in Switzerland were steam worked. One was Alusuisse Chippis where I was able to spend some time on Monday 22nd September.

Although I did not have access to the factory area, plenty of railway activity was visible from public roads.

The factory locos, two very well kept standard gauge 0-6-0WT, worked the connection between two and three kilometres long  to the main line at Sierre station on the Geneva-Brig-Domodossola route. Additionally there were trips to another factory as well as sorting sidings.

The connecting line featured a steel lattice girder bridge over a river, mountain backdrops, doubleheading and locos working chimney first up a steep grade to Sierre station.

The two locos I saw were:

30 'SIERRE' 0-6-0WT OC SLM 2130/1910

31 'GERONDE' 0-6-0WT OC SLM 2298/1912 (with bright yellow front handrails)

'Continental Railway Journal' noted there were five steam locos here.

30 was ex Swiss Railways, still carrying SBB number 8507. It also displayed an overhaul date of 28/07/75, so was almost fresh from the workshops when I saw it.

There was activity both morning and afternoon with a break at lunchtime. At Sierre station I saw two doubleheaded arrivals in the morning and another with one loco at the front and one at the back. Two trains after lunch had just one loco, though enough wagons for a couple more doubleheaders were in the sorting sidings.

The method of operating was interesting. The locos picked up 12 - 13 coke wagons from the mid-point sorting sidings, drew up, then reversed almost back to the factory, before blasting along the line to gain enough momentum to surmount the gradient into Sierre station.