Thursday 28th May - day trip from St Poelten on the Mariazellbahn to Mariazell - not included in the pass and no discount but worthwhile. The Mariazellbahn is a 760mm (narrow gauge) line starting from a side platform at St Polten - half an hour by train from Vienna (though we are staying in St Poelten). It starts off through relatively low lands, winding never the less around fields and over level crossings and then the scenery changes and it runs up an alpine valley past pleasant Austrian homes up to Laubenbachmuhle. From there it becomes a mountain line, curving back and forth on itself to gain height and then - high above the valley - it passes through the 2km Gosing tunnel at 892 metres above sea level. From there it sits high on the ridge, falling just a little to the terminus at Mariazell - or, rather, just over half a mile short of Mariazell.
The line was electrified very early on when steam locomotives struggled, and these days the daily services are operated by modern spacious articulated 3 carriage trains which give lie to the narrow gauge. Well - where I say "spacious" we could have done with 6 carriages not 3, as we were joined in both directions by organised tours who had booked most of the seats. Smooth ride, though careful as you walk around with all those corners. Good visibility. The timetable shows panorama cars on some high season services, and occasional steam trains too. But not yesterday - trains leave St Polten every hour (and more in the commuter peak), with some carrying on to the mountain section to Mariazell. Looking at it as something of an aficionado of timetables, it's cleverly organised to cope - just - with the passenger flows offered.
Trains run "clock face" - from St Poelten at :37 and from Mariazell at :06 (with gaps) on a single track line. On the hour and half hour (:00 and :30) there are passing loops and the train pass each other with minimal delay. Other loops allow for the peak and high season extras to pass too. Signalling is inconspicuous and efficient - no stopping here to exchange tokens, or sitting in the middle of nowhere to wait for a train coming the other way on awkwardly located loops.
There are many stations along the way - and many of them are request stops. Clear screens on the train tell you to press the button if you want the train to stop, and the screen registers your request with the big word STOP in red. In the platforms of the "halts" there are button to press if you want the train to call (one button for each direction) and this means the train does not need to slow down in case someone is waiting and sticks their hand out as happens in England.
It's all the more remarkable how obvious the information is when we don't speak the local language very much, and yet we can work things out. A high proportion of people here don't understand / speak English either and we are certainly on something of a local adventure.
There was a small step up at St Polten into the train (and a wheelchair ramp the train manager could deploy if necessary. At Mariazell for the return, incredibly, it was level access and the train has an extending flap that removes the gap between the train and platform. I was across the yard looking at the old Salzburg museum train when our return train arrived, and Lisa boarded unassisted - it's good, but pity it's one step down at St Poelten. And you can get caught out there looking for the lift to the concourse.
The party leader of the tour group wasn't at all pleased with me joining the return train in the same carriage as Lisa had boarded when I finished learning about the Salzburg local carriages of Victorian vintage - pointing out (incorrectly) that it was all reserved and I should choose another carriage. However, the priority seat the Lisa had transferred to was not reserved (for his group or anyone else) and I joined her, and we were joined by other local travellers getting off and on along the way. A common language in smiles and gestures, and Lisa has a little German. As seems to be the norm, a smile of friendship and a moving things around to make it comfortable for everyone does wonders with the locals, while the tour groups (and, yes, they were German speaking) take a holier-than-thou stance and are the least friendly of fellow travellers - that is a wider observation. A big "thank you" though to the one gent who was passing Gluewine around on the way up and when I offered a smile and signed a thumbs up gave me a little too. There's a psychology in the groups - extends to them thoughtlessly blocking platforms and not letting others through; I suspect being on holiday gives some of them permission to switch off their brains and I'm sure they're nice at home. Having said which, I'm sure that a consistent - day in, day out flow of groups has helped keep the line alive, open, and with a decent service.
We loved the information screen which gave all connecting local buses on the approach to each station, advertised what was going on in the area on future days, and attractions, and in quieter times gave us the driver's view looking ahead on a webcam. All very well done.
The station building at Mariazell is lovely - multiple platforms, run round loop, clean, flowers, and a heated waiting room which is full of ideas and thoughts for our upcoming "Information at the Station" project. Some elements are over the top - we're probably not in need of ski storage lockers, and not going to have a display case of goods which you can order online via
QR▸ codes for - I would presume - home delivery. Seating, a big interactive information board, other screens telling you about upcoming bus and train departures, and plenty of power points clearly positioned to help people looking to charge devices with stashing and desk space around. And literature racks, carefully collated into separate public transport and other local attraction sections. Open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. which coincides with the full running time of the train on the upper section of the line from the arrival of the 06:37 from St Polten to the departure of the 19:06 back.
And here I am - deep into writing - what of Mariazell itself? The town is the best part of a mile from the station; some trains do have bus connections but rather that research those we set off along a lovely path, part of which doubled as a local road to some houses. Lisa had trouble with a policeman along there - grounded Henry on a sleeping one, but a bit of a push from me helped clear that; nearly toppled over on the return trying to go around the end. To keep travel light, we hadn't taken our charger with us and - seeing the route falling from the station to the town, with the town and basilica looming up ahead of us we stopped short. A lesson for following days - I'm sure that with the charger we would have made it to a cafe in the town and been able to get back - but whilst we travel brave, we don't take foolish risks like being left marooned with flat batteries. No problem *to us* - I understand there are interesting relics and things to see in Mariazell, but more interesting to others. We utterly enjoyed the walk, just a very few others on it and remote enough for another gent to step just off the path and pee in the bushes. Meadows, cows, mountains - real "Sound of music" countryside - even the tunnel, you may note, was called Gosing or is that go-sing.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariazell_RailwayP.S. Our shortened stay in Mariazell due to lack of battery had another silver lining - an earlier return to the hotel and a chance to eat the local food
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