Bernina Express

The Bernina Express is a named train in Switzerland running as a Panorama Express (PE) that connects Chur (Switzerland) and Tirano (Italy) by crossing the Swiss Engadin Alps. For most of its journey, the train also runs along the World Heritage Site known as the Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina landscapes. The train is operated by the Rhaetian Railway company for the purpose of sightseeing. It takes the form of an enhanced regional service between Tirano and Chur: panoramic coaches with enlarged windows and multi-lingual (English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, and Japanese) audio guide on board. It is not an "express" in the sense of being a high-speed train, but rather an express train that stops only at selected stations. The trainset is usually pulled by class RhB ABe 4/4III locomotives. Passengers must make a seat reservation either directly when they purchase Bernina Express tickets, or pay a small supplement on top of their regional train tickets. The Bernina Express is popular with tourists. It connects in Tirano with a bus service via Lake Como in Italy to Lugano in Switzerland, with connections to the Gotthard Panorama Express, another tourist train. The Albula line and the Bernina line on the Bernina Express route were jointly declared a World Heritage Site in 2008. The trip on the Bernina Express through this World Heritage Site is a four-hour railway journey across 196 bridges, through 55 tunnels and across the Bernina Pass at 2,253 metres (7,392 ft) above sea level. The entire line is 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) (metre gauge) and electrified. The Albula line was constructed between 1898 and 1904; it has been operated by the Rhaetian Railway since its inauguration. The Bernina line was built in 1908–1910 and operated independently until the 1940s, when it was acquired...