Salzkammergut Local Railway
On the courtyard of the train station
On the courtyard of the train station
The Salzkammergut Local Railway (SKGLB) was a narrow-gauge railway (760 mm gauge) and ran continuously between Ischl and Salzburg from 1894. Travel from Ischl to Salzburg took about three hours. The train was extremely popular and passed three lakes: Wolfgangsee, Krottensee, Mondsee.
The Salzkammergut Local Railway also included the cogwheel railway built in 1893 to Mount Schafberg and the boat service on Lake Wolfgangsee. In 1918, the railway transported 650,000 passengers. The highest number was reached during WWII in 1943 and 1944 with 1.5 million passengers. From 1950 onwards, passenger numbers declined, but held steady between 800,000 and 900,000 people. Nevertheless, the provinces of Upper Austria and Salzburg decided to stop the train service despite fierce protest. The last passenger train ran on 30 September 1957, and the last freight train on 10 October. The tracks were then demolished so quickly that a train set in St. Gilgen could only be transported away by low-loader trucks.
On 20 November 2017, the only locomotive still in existence and an original wagon were ceremoniously erected on the courtyard of the train station in Bad Ischl.
