Trains and trams in Europe - 4/9 to 4/26/2017 - 1

Hi, My wife Ruthe and I along with friends Cathy and Jim Kleeman enjoyed a trip to Europe in April that included 4 nights in Lucerne, Switzerland followed by a cruise down the Rhine River to Antwerp in Belgium with a side trip up the Moselle River as far as Trier, Germany.

Our hotel in Lucerne was a block and a half from the main railroad station and Jim is a very accomplished railroad photographer so there were many opportunities to photograph trains on the trip. This blog presents a selection of photos taken in Lucerne, Switzerland.

A bridge carries Tribschenstrasse over the throat to the main station. Jim, his wife Cathy and I ventured here on the afternoon of our arrival in Lucerne. We shot a number of trains here but as the angles were all about the same I just chose the one I liked best.

On the morning of April 10 Jim and I explored the interior of the Lucerne station or Bahnhof. One of the things I have come to really appreciate about European central stations is the number that have really interesting train sheds. The locomotive hauled trains operated in push-pull fashion.

Most of the trains used a variety electric multiple unit equipment.

Here a locomotive hauled train is arriving as a switcher pull an EMU train from the station.

Later in the day Jim, Cathy and I walked out to the local transportation museum. However, as our time was limited and it was pricey we elected to skip it. I took a bus back to town and was able to photograph two trains (above and below) at the bus stop.

On returning to Lucerne I again visited the station (above and three below).

I was fortunate to get some better angles on one of the switchers working the station.

The train on the left is departing.

The locomotive on this arriving train is advertising two new base tunnels in the Alps, one of which is the recently opened Gotthard Base tunnel.

On April 12 I wandered into the station briefly and spotted what I believe to be a ballast train.

Thanks for looking.