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This article is about the railway within Busch Gardens Williamsburg in Virginia. For the railway within Busch Gardens Tampa, see Serengeti Express.
Busch Gardens Railway
Der Hochbeinige approaching a grade crossing in 2011
Overview
Locale Busch Gardens Williamsburg
Dates of operation1975–
Technical
Track gauge 3 ft (914 mm)
Length1.5 miles (2.4 km)
Route map
Busch Gardens Railway
Legend
Bus transfer
(via short walk outside park)
 Heatherdowns
Roundhouse
(not open to public)
 New France
Gondola lift transfers
(via short walks inside park)
 Festa Italia

The Busch Gardens Railway is a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge amusement park heritage railroad located within Busch Gardens Williamsburg amusement park in Williamsburg, Virginia. Opened in 1975, the railway is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long, and has stations in the Heatherdowns, Festa Italia, and New France sections of the park. It features three trains pulled by 4-4-0 steam locomotives manufactured by Crown Metal Products. [1]

Description

The railway consists of a loop of 1.5 miles (2.4 km). Trains run in a clockwise direction, with a complete round trip taking approximately 20 minutes. There are two major bridges on the line, the Rhine River Trestle and the Loch Ness Trestle. The trains are inspected, serviced, and fueled at the Caribou Train Station in New France, which also contains two storage tracks to hold trains not currently in use. Caribou Station also has a water supply that the engine crews use to top off the locomotive's tenders every two laps of operation.

The railway operates three locomotives, each with their own train consisting of open-sided passenger coaches with a livery matching the locomotive.

History

The railway opened in 1975, the same year as the park. It initially operated with two stations at Heatherdowns and New France. The line initially operated with two locomotives, Balmoral Castle and Der Hochbeinige.

In 1987, the park expanded, adding the Festa Italia area, and with it the infill Festa Station, the third (and final) station on the line. In 1997, a third locomotive was acquired from a defunct amusement park, and given an Alpine theme to match the newly-opened Alpengeist roller coaster.

On August 16, 2018, the Balmoral Castle caught on fire. One employee received minor injuries. [2] The locomotive was subsequently repaired and returned to service.

Locomotives

All three locomotives are propane-fueled steam engines. [3]

Busch Gardens Railway locomotive details [1]
Number Name Image Wheel arrangement Date built Builder Date entered service Notes
17 Alpen Express 4-4-0 (American) 1972 Crown Metal Products 1997 [4] Alpine-themed, painted in green livery. Originally built for the now-defunct Lakeside Amusement Park in Salem, Virginia, with American old-west theming. When acquired by Busch Gardens, the engine was rebuilt with a new smokestack, a new headlight, its pilot replaced with a snowplow, and its bell removed; however, it still retains a relatively American appearance compared to the other two engines.
238 Der Hochbeinige 4-4-0 (American) 1974 Crown Metal Products 1975 German-themed. Painted in red livery based on the Prussian state railways, with Preußische Staatsbahn painted on the tender.
661 Balmoral Castle 4-4-0 (American) 1974 Crown Metal Products 1975 Scottish-themed. Painted in blue livery based on the Caledonian Railway Company, with CR painted on the tender.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Crown Locomotive Roster".
  2. ^ "Train at Busch Gardens theme park catches fire". Fox News. 16 August 2018.
  3. ^ WAVY Web Staff (Aug 16, 2018). "Busch Gardens train, 'Escape from Pompeii' fires ruled accidental, officials say". WAVY. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  4. ^ "Norfolk & Western Class J No. 611 on Facebook". Facebook. Archived from the original on 2022-04-27.[ user-generated source]

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Busch Gardens Railway.
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