Alapayevsk narrow-gauge railway

Alapayevsk narrow-gauge railway
Alapayevsk narrow-gauge railway
Overview
Native name	Алапаевская узкоколейная железная дорога; АУЖД
Locale	Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia
Termini	Alapayevsk
Service
Type	Narrow gauge railway
Operator(s)	МУП «АУЖД»
History
Opened	1898
Technical
Line length	250 kilometres (160 mi)
Track gauge	750 mm (2 ft 5+1⁄2 in)
Route map
Route map

The Alapayevsk narrow-gauge railway (Russian: Алапаевская узкоколейная железная дорога, АУЖД) is a Russian narrow-gauge railway with a track gauge of 750 mm (2 ft 5+1⁄2 in). The Head Office of the narrow-gauge railway is located in Alapayevsk, Sverdlovsk Oblast. 57°50′50″N 61°40′21″E / 57.84731°N 61.67245°E / 57.84731; 61.67245

History

The first section of the railway (Alapayevsk–Mugay) commenced operations in July 1898. Construction was undertaken by French businessman A.Illero. The railway had a maximum length of about 600 kilometres (370 mi) in the 1970s, though estimates vary.^{[citation needed]}^[1]

Current status

At present only 177 kilometres (110 mi) of the railway is operational. Current operations include passenger traffic and general goods movement. The railway operates a scheduled passenger service from Alapayevsk. The railway is the primary means of communication for seven rural settlements in the Alapaevsk District: Elnichnaya; Strokinka; Berezovka; Muratkovo; Sankin and Kalach. Principal cargoes include wood, food, postal services and fuel.^[2]