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Estrada de Ferro Campos do Jordão: a touristic mountain railway in Brasil Since 1874, when the first lung clinic opened in Campos do Jordão, sick patents were transported on horseback up to the healthy mountain climate. This transport was very uncomfortable. At the beginning of the 20th century for the first time the idea of building a mountain railway came up which should allow a more comfortable and quicker voyage. The medical doctor Emílio Marcondes Ribas, supported by Dr. Victor Godinho, an influential politician, proposed the construction of a railway line which should connect the city of Pindamonhangaba in the Paraíba valley, 132 km from São Paulo and 250 km from Rio de Janeiro, via the Serra da Mantiqueira with the high altitude platform. Construction of the line started in 1912; the line opened in 1914, and one of the steam trains then usual took 12 hours for the line of 47 km. For the crossing of the the river Paraíba do Sul passengers had to use a ferry. From 1917 onwards a motor coach with a Mercedes petrol engine of 22 HP (it has been restored and will go to a museum) was used which was transported on board of the ferry, and in 1924 the line was electrified by The English Electric Company at 1500 Volt direct current, and a bridge was built to cross the river. The electrical equipment of the vehicles, including the beautifully restored control equipment is still used today by the motor coaches of the mountain section, with, however, new bodywork. For the transport of cars and buses electric goods motor coaches called "Gôndolas" were used until the former modest dust road was modernised by 1977. For the transport of fruits from the Japanese community there were electric goods locomotives. With the end of the treatment of lung diseases in 1970 the railway which originally was under the rule of the Transport Secretariat of the government of the state of São Paulo came under the rule of the Secretary for Sport and Tourism and today serves for the transport of tourists, mainly from São Paulo. During the hot summers they escape the heat of the city, and in the winter they run on skis. Campos do Jordão is called Switzerland of Brasil, and many hotels and restaurants have names such as "Lausanne" and the like. In 1970 at Águas Claras, at the end of the valley section, the Parque Reinas was opened, at the station Santo António de Pinhal a panoramic view point and at Campos do Jordão the Parque Capivari with the first chair lift of Brasil. The line consists of three distinctive parts: (1) the valley section from Pindamonhangaba on 551 meter above sea level up to the Parque Reinas das Águas Claras at Piracuama along the river of the same name, about 20 km, running time 40 minutes, (2) the consequent mountain section of 16 km with a gradient of up to 10,5 per cent (without rack - in Switzerland at gradients steeper than 7 per cent the use of rack is considered) and in particular on the left hand side a splendid wide view down to the valley, and reaching the highest point of the line 1743 meter above sea level at Cacique, and the consequent section of 3 km down into the valley, and (3) the tram line from São Cristovão in the district of Abernésia to the terminal station Emílio Ribas at Campos do Jordão with a length of 8 km, at 1700 meter above sea level, thus almost the height of St. Moritz in Switzerland. On the valley section mostly the passenger and goods motor coaches V-1 and V-2 with trailers from Guaruja are used, as well as the motor coaches A -3 and AL-1, on the complete line (including the mountain section) the motor coaches A-1, A-2 and A-4 which are equipped with electric brakes, magnetic track brakes and air brakes type Westinghouse, and which today only have one driving position, and on the tram section tram cars A-5 and A-6 built by MAN in Germany which earlier worked on the Guaruja tramway, near Santos, and were acquired together with a further tramcar A-7 in 1956. In addition can be found the Gôndola G-2 from 1928 which earlier - before the opening of the improved road in 1977 - transported cars, together with the still existing Gôndalas G-1 and G-3 and further Gôndolas. At Pindamonhangaba - a name of indian origin - are the workshops and offices of the company. An important structure is the steel bridge across the river Paraíba do Sul with a length of 160 meter. It was constructed in France and was imported knocked down in 1924. The supports come from Portugal and were adapted by hand. Before that time trains were transferred by ferries. Today's bridge is of a more recent origin. The line owned until 1960 a stone quarry which was situated at Piracuama, 17 km from Pindamonhangaba, and which today houses the Parque Reino which is being visited by 2000 tourists per year. Also, the railway was responsible until 1970 for all the telephonic connexions of the area. All the photographs on this page were taken in May 1997 by the chairman of the association FLB, Patrick Rudin, and give a good impression of the rolling stock used at present.
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- and below to supplement some new photos by our chairman Patrick Rudin, taken in May 2007:
The rolling stock Before the opening (1912): 2 steam engines After the opening (1914) additionally: 2 steam engines, of which one for the mountain section 9 light motor coaches "Litorinas" for the valley section 1 petrol motor coach Bugatti, from 1917 on for the mountain section, with Mercedes-Benz motor 22 HP The petrol motor coach Bugatti is at present being restored and receives a new Mercedes motor which is more expensive than originally the entire vehicle. 3 luggage coaches 1 goods wagon, closed 1 goods wagon open 1 open wagon After electrification (1924): 2 motor coaches A-1 and A-2, 4 motors at 750 Volt, two each in series, total 240 HP, manufacturer: Birmingham Carriage & Wagon Company, and English Electric, today 40 seats 2 goods motor coaches V-1 and V-2, as above (originally: B-1 and B-2) From 1927 additionally: 1 motor coach A-3, as above 5 gôndolas G-1 to G-5, as above Still around are G-1 and G-2, whereas the old G-2 has been renumbered G-1 and the old G-1 is under reconstruction. On the web site by Kelso Medici (see below) there is still a photograph of the old G-3 from 1928 (English Electric) which however has been demolished in the meantime. From 1932 additionally: 1 motor coach A-4, built at the line's own workshops with English Electric bogies, otherwise as above 2 new goods motor coaches, V-3 and V-4 (ex works numbered 3V and 4V), 4 motors as above, but from MAN/Siemens Schuckert These goods motor coaches were after the second World War rebuilt into car transporters (Gôndolas) and renumbered G-3 and G-4, whereby one driving position was removed and new, flatter transport platforms were built. One photograph of the rebuilt Gôndola G-4 can be found on page 83 of the book "História do Transporte Urbano no Brasil" (see below). From Guaruja, 1956: 1 tram car A-5, ex Guaruja 5, of 1924, 4 axles, 2 motors 750 Volt, as built with maximum traction bogies 2 tram cars A-6 and A-7, ex Guaruja 9 and 7, of 1930, 4 axles, 2 motors 750 Volt, as built with normal bogies All tram cars have 36 upholstered seats with reversible back rests. 1 steeple cab locomotive T-1, of 1924, length over buffers 6,04 Meter; width 2,45 Meter; wheel base 2,8 Meter; 2 motors 750 Volt of 50kW each; single-chamber (unicameral) air brake; maximum speed 45 km/hour 2 passenger coaches 1st class, 38 seats 1 passenger coach 2nd class, 30 seats 2 mixed coaches 2nd class, 40 seats All have air brakes, manufacturer MAN/Siemens Schuckert Of these vehicles tram car A-5 was burned during the Carnival 1976. In the meantime, it has been rebuilt and has received normal bogies. Tram car A-7 has in the meantime received maximum traction bogies, possibly from A-5. The turnstile (roleta) at the center of the car, used for passenger counting, has been removed, and it operates on the valley section. Of the locomotive T-1 (originally used for shunting at Campos do Jordão) the motor is used as drive power of the chair lift to the Morro do Elefante; the stationary body itself serves for the sale of tickets to the lift. As these trams have two separate motors, they can only operate at the EFCJ in series. Maximum traction bogies have large leading (driven) wheels in the operating direction, the others are small. From 1972 additionally: 1 luxury motor coach AL-1 (ex TL-1) for the valley section, with English Electric equipment (as A-1 to A-4). This motor coach was probably built up on two bogies of demolished Gôndolas or reserve bogies. All motor coaches and Gôndolas have in the meantime received new bodies from the EFCJ workshop. Gôndola G-3 (probably the old Gôndola from English Electric, of 1928) received temporarily a passenger coach body without change of number. A picture of this can be found on the web site of Allen Morrison (see below). In the eighties goods motor coach V-2 received a new metal body with striking colours and has been employed to draw excursion trains from Campos de Jordão with open trailers. Goods motor coach V-1 has in the meantime received a new saloon body for passenger transport without central platform and with small windows and is at present being used for the same purpose. Also for these trains occasionally hired steam engines are used, i.e. locomotive No. 2 of the ABPF, Associação Brasileira de Preservação Ferroviária, Campinas, and locomotive No. 4 of the APFA, Associação de Preservação Ferroviária, Atibaia, all equipped with the EFCJ logo. These excursion trains only circulate between Emílio Ribas and Abessínia, a distance of 4 km. These trains mainly operate in winter, the high season. From 2002 additionally: 1 steam engine ex sugar plantation in Alagoas. Year of manufacture 1947 Technical data of the line: Track gauge 1 Meter Overhead current: 1500 Volt direct current 1 substation at Eugênio Lefevre (halfway) 3 hand operated turntables at Pindamonhagaba, Eugênio Lefevre and Emílio Ribas Maximum gradient 10,5 per cent Average speed: valley section 32 km/h, mountain section 16 km/h 1 metal bridge, length 160 Meter Workshops, car barn and offices at Pindamonhangaba (built 1924) Books about the line: Waldemar Corrêa Stiel, História do Transporte Urbano no Brasil, editor PINI Ltda., Brasília DF 1984, out of print, still available at 2nd hand bookshops Allen Morrison, The Tramways of Brazil, editor Bonde Press, New York, 1989, out of print, still available at 2nd hand bookshops Luz Uebel und Wolfgang D. Richter, 150 Jahre Schienenfahrzeuge aus Nürnberg (MAN, Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnberg), EK-Verlag Freiburg im Breisgau, can be borrowed at the ETH library Zürich. Links to other websites: http://www.efcj.sp.gov.br - New official web site of the EFCJ from November 2011 http://www.tramz.com/br/cj/cj.html - Allen Morrison (english) http://www.pell.portland.or.us/~efbrazil/efcj.html - Gorni http://www.geocities.com/area51/matrix/3175/ - Kelso Medici http://www.efbrasil.eng.br/electro/efcj.html - Electrification, Gorni
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