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30-818: The Puster Valley is located in the western part of the Periadriatic Seam , which separates the Southern Limestone Alps from the Central Eastern Alps , as well as most of the limestone Alps from the central gneiss and slate peaks of the range's central section. East of Sillian , the Puster Valley leaves the Peradriatic Line (which moves into the Gail valley) and turns to the northeast towards Lienz. Half of

60-587: Is a 30 minute cycle during the day, and also on weekends during the winter season. Every second train continues to Lienz. In winter, the trains terminating in Innichen run to Sillian, but do not stop in Weitlanbrunn. Some trains are also connected to the Brenner Railway and continue to Merano. The pairs of freight trains foreseen in the planning of the electrification did not materialise, but before

90-777: Is a distinct geologic fault in Southern Europe , running S-shaped about 1,000 km (621 mi) from the Tyrrhenian Sea through the whole Southern Alps as far as Hungary . It forms the division between the Adriatic plate and the Eurasian plate . Within the Eastern Alps , the line marks the border between the Central Eastern Alps and the Southern Limestone Alps . In the Western Alps it forms

120-533: Is called Upper Puster Valley . The towns in the Puster Valley are located between 750 and 1,180 meters (2,460 and 3,870 ft) above sea level. The most important of these towns in the western valley are Toblach , Welsberg-Taisten , Olang , and Bruneck ; the most important in the eastern valley are Innichen , Sexten , and Sillian . The largest tributaries of the Rienz river form the Antholzer Bach ,

150-415: Is located in Innichen station. While operations continued, electrical operations commenced at the timetable change on 28 May 1989. During the electrification in the Puster Valley, many crossings were replaced by underpasses. This involved tracks and embankment being removed during the night and prefabricated underpasses being inserted hydraulically. In addition, the trackwork and track base were reinforced and

180-584: Is the cause for the earthquake zone between Vienna and Friuli . The last destructive earthquake happened in Friuli in 1976. The uplift caused violent erosion of the young orogen, which led to the formation of the Hohe Tauern window . At several regions a heavy uplift of the Central Alps by some kilometers took place, and also a shift of more than 50 km. From east to west, the course of

210-1010: The Ahr , the Pragser Bach , the Gsieser Bach , the Gran Ega , the Pfunderer Bach , and the Lüsenbach . The Puster Valley's largest side valley is the Tauferer Ahrntal . The Drau's largest eastern tributaries are the Sextner Bach and the Villgraten-Bach . The Puster Valley was inhabited since prehistoric times as finds belonging to the Iron Age have been found in that area. In more recent times this zone

240-646: The Austrian Southern Railway Company , and from 1918 from Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS). Class 740 , 741 and 940 locomotives were common until the early 1980s. The use of diesel locomotives and diesel multiple units lasted only for a short time. After mixed electrical operations with a locomotive change in Innichen, only two-system Stadler Flirt articulated multiple units have been operated by SAD Nahverkehr ( Südtiroler Automobildienst , "South Tyrol automotive service local transport") and FS. Between Franzensfeste and Innichen there

270-758: The Brenner Railway in Franzensfeste and runs via Bruneck and Toblach to Innichen, where it continues as the Drava Valley Railway ( Drautalbahn ). Historically, there was no separation between the Puster Valley Railway and the Drava Valley Railway, as the granting of the concession, the construction and the commissioning of the line from Villach to Franzensfeste covered the whole line. However, since

300-682: The Empire . The Puster Valley belonged to the imperial province of Noricum , and the local populations, during the four centuries of the domination of Rome , began to assimilate the customs, the language and finally the Christian religion . In the 5th century the Goths , the Baiuvarii and the Slavs decided to descend in this area, with consequent conflicts between Baiuvarii and Slavs, which ended with

330-522: The Vienna South –Villach–Lienz–Franzensfeste– Innsbruck route, it was discontinued at the May 1996 timetable change, meaning there is no longer any cross-border long-distance traffic in the Puster Valley Railway. Between 2008 and 2010, Südtiroler Transportstrukturen (South Tyrol transport infrastructure; STA), which coordinates transport in the province of South Tyrol , financed the total renovation of

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360-576: The Wipp Valley and ends at Franzensfeste station , meaning that passengers travelling towards Brixen and Bolzano have to change to a southbound train. In order to save the majority of passengers having to detour and change trains, there is a proposal for an additional line is in the area, where the Rigger Valley (a short section of the valley of the Eisack ) would be crossed by a bridge and

390-822: The Baiuvarii victory. In the 10th century the Puster Valley started to belong to the Pustrissa countship, firstly mentioned in 974 as Pustrissa and Pustrussa ; in 1091 the countship was ceded by the Emperor Henry IV to the Bishop of Brixen and in the 16th century the Hapsburg took possession of it. During the Napoleonic era , following the Austrian defeat at Austerlitz and the treaty of Pressburg in 1805,

420-579: The Drava Valley Railway from Villach to Lienz was built as a flat railway, it becomes a mountain railway on its continuation to Franzensfeste and reaches its highest point at the Toblach Saddle at about 1215 m above sea level. An original task of the Puster Valley Railway was to connect East Tyrol to the capital of the Tyrol, Innsbruck . However, with the collapse of the Habsburg monarchy and

450-530: The Periadriatic Seam and the names given to it regionally are as follows: Puster Valley Railway The Puster Valley Railway (German: Pustertalbahn ; Italian: Ferrovia della Val Pusteria ) is a standard gauge , single-track railway line in the Puster Valley between Franzensfeste (Italian: Fortezza) and Innichen (San Candido), South Tyrol , Italy. The line branches off

480-427: The Puster Valley Railway. The route was initially prepared by adapting the stations and the interlockings to support a half-hour cycle, which was introduced gradually up to December 2009. All stations were equipped with 55 cm high platforms and underpasses, enabling the time-saving, simultaneous entry of crossing trains. The remote-control signalling and passenger information systems were also brought up to date with

510-521: The building permit to connect, Vienna with the Tyrol via the Southern Railway ( Südbahn ). The Hügel & Sager company was awarded the contract to construct the Puster Valley Railway and work began in the late autumn of 1869. As this proceeded much faster than expected, operations on the 20 km long Puster Valley Railway and Drava Valley Railway started on 20 November 1871. While

540-514: The division between the southern Apulian foreland and the central crystalline zones of the Alps. Continental collision is still going on, with the Apulian and Eurasian plates still converging . The central zones of the Alps are rising too, causing vertical slip along the fault . The result is the set of major fault zones collectively named Periadriatic Seam. Movement along the Periadriatic Seam

570-845: The entire region passed to the Bavaria : the Tyroleans, led by Andreas Hofer, repeatedly fought against the Bavarian domination. After Napoleon's fall, the Puster valley was reunited with Austria and, following the World War I , it was assigned to Italy . Opening in 1871 the Puster Valley Railway uses the relative simple landscape to avoid climbing steep slopes. The Puster Valley District ( Italian : Comprensorio della Val Pusteria ; German : Bezirksgemeinschaft Pustertal )

600-516: The latest technology. Waiting rooms were also renewed, lifts built, station areas rearranged, eight new trains purchased, car and bicycle parking spaces were installed and two new stations were built: St. Lorenzen station was opened in December 2008 and Percha-Kronplatz station, which is directly connected to the Kronplatz ski resort by cable car, on 12 December 2010. As a result of these measures,

630-541: The line in 1986 and 1988. Special efforts were required for the tunnel near Welsberg (Monguelfo), where, due to constant collapses, the entire ground cover of the 140 m long tunnel was removed and replaced after the construction of a new tunnel structure. While the Puster Valley Railway is equipped with the Italian electrical system (3 kV DC ), the Drava Valley Railway is equipped with the Austrian electrical system (15 kV / 16.7 Hz AC ). The voltage change point

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660-474: The line. Until 2009, there was only regular freight traffic between Bruneck and Franzensfeste. The trains, coming and going from Hall in Tirol, mostly ran in the mornings on certain days of the week. There has been no freight traffic on the Puster Valley Railway since 2012. The Rigger Valley Link project has been long discussed: after leaving the Puster Valley, the Puster Valley Railway currently swings north into

690-477: The loss of South Tyrol to Italy after the end of the First World War, the importance of the railway declined sharply. From 1985 to 1989, the Puster Valley Railway and the Drava Valley Railway were electrified on the basis of a treaty between Italy and Austria signed in 1984. At the same time, almost all viaducts were renewed and all tunnels were enlarged to allow electrical operation during two closures of

720-523: The new Tarvisio–Udine railway ( Pontebbana ) was completed in the early 1990s, several empty freight trains ran daily. In addition, imports of the Fiat models, Panda , Cinquecento and Seicento , made in Poland were handled over the Puster Valley Railway. The line was only of particular importance for a short time when the Brenner Railway was closed, when almost a hundred freight and long-distance trains used

750-506: The number of passengers tripled within five years (January–November 2006: 312,000 passengers; January–November 2011: 980,000 passengers). The new Bruneck Nord station was opened near the hospital in October 2013. The new Vierschach station, which was connected by cable car to Helm and the associated ski resort, was opened in December 2014. Prior to electrification, steam-hauled trains were mainly operated, initially with locomotives from

780-503: The station facilities were rebuilt. The purpose of the electrification was the relief of the Brenner Railway, with the intention of the Italian side to deliver up to ten pairs of freight trains a day including a rolling highway service to run on the Puster Valley Railway. This has never happened. In fact, the opposite happened, because while the Val Pusteria / Pustertal had previously been a well-used international express service on

810-628: The transition between the Italian and Austrian electrification systems is now located in Innichen station , this is usually considered the terminus of the two lines. Alternatively, the national border east of Innichen or the Toblach saddle west of Innichen may be seen as the border between the two lines. As early as 1858, the Southern Railway Company ( Südbahngesellschaft ) developed its first plans and shortly afterwards received

840-611: The valley drains to the west to the Adriatic via the Adige river; the other half drains to the east to the Black Sea via the Danube . The watershed lies in the shallow valley floor called Toblacher Feld ( Conca di Dobbiaco ). The Rienz river flows westwards through the Puster Valley and the Drau river flows eastwards into East Tyrol . The eastern part of the valley on the upper Drava

870-647: Was founded in 1969 with the merger of 26 municipalities. Its combined area is 2,071 km² and its population is over 73,000. Its main town is Bruneck . According to the 2001 census, 80.96% of the population of the valley speak German, 13.40% Ladin , and 5.64% Italian as their native language. The following municipalities are part of the Puster Valley District: 46°44′N 12°13′E  /  46.733°N 12.217°E  / 46.733; 12.217 Periadriatic Seam [REDACTED] Alps portal The Periadriatic Seam (or fault)

900-725: Was inhabited by people belonging to the Illyrian stock : they were called "Saevates" by the Romans (hence the name "Sebatum" of the Roman station of today's Saint Lawrence .) In the 6th century, the Celtic invaders merged with the Illyrian population. Around the end of the I century B.C, the Rienz valley was mainly used by the Romans as an arterial road to connect the north-eastern regions of

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