Da Lat Cogwheel Railway

Synchronized degradation

On November 20th, the People's Committee of Lam Dong province officially submitted a document to the Ministry of Transport and the Vietnam Railway Authority proposing that they consider and direct relevant units to promptly invest in and upgrade the infrastructure of the Da Lat - Trai Mat railway line.

The current Da Lat - Trai Mat railway line is proving very effective for passenger transport, especially serving tourists visiting Da Lat.

The official document states that the Da Lat - Trai Mat railway line, built during the French colonial period and restored in 1991 (including 6.724km of main track; 0.81km of station track; 9 switchgear sets and 380m of culverts), is part of the Thap Cham - Da Lat railway restoration project.

However, the results of the October 2023 periodic equipment inspection by the Saigon Railway Exploitation Branch and the results of the November 4, 2023 field inspection of the planned periodic repair projects for 2024 by the inter-agency team (according to Decision No. 432/QD-BGTVT dated April 10, 2023 of the Minister of Transport) show that this railway line is severely degraded, with some sections experiencing localized flooding and landslides, and wastewater and garbage causing traffic safety hazards as well as significantly affecting tourists and local people.

The route is over 6.7km long but features continuous curves, none of which have guardrails (the smallest curve radius being R=195m). The route passes through a high mountainous area with a relatively steep longitudinal gradient, especially the steep section before Trai Mat station (Da Lat - Trai Mat direction).

The railway embankment is on average 5.0m wide, with many sections having deep excavations and raised embankments. The railway corridor is mainly hilly and mountainous, and during heavy rains, water from the hillsides flows down onto the railway embankment, carrying soil and rocks, causing flooding of 20cm - 50cm and significantly affecting train operations.

The railway tracks are primarily P26 rails, 12m long, on a mix of concrete and steel sleepers of French origin, which are heavily worn and damaged. The average sleeper density is 16 sleepers per 12.0m long bridge. The current switches (Tg1/7) on P26 rails are worn beyond standard specifications, and there are no replacement parts available. The existing ballast is insufficient in thickness, dirty, and has poor elasticity; in many places, the ballast is buried under soil, and the surface is covered with vegetation. The platform's concrete and soil-graded surface is not aesthetically pleasing or suitable for the station's architecture. The track length at Trai Mat Station is too short to accommodate trains longer than four carriages.

Along the entire route, there are no bridges, only 19 culverts for drainage. Currently, some sections on both sides of the route have longitudinal drainage ditches, and some locations have transverse drainage ditches; however, most of them have been buried under soil and rocks, resulting in frequent localized flooding along the route.

Currently, there are 4 legal level crossings, 5 unauthorized crossings, and 39 footpaths. Most of the intersections along the route are located within the curves and slopes of the main road due to topographical factors, resulting in narrow crossing widths at these points.

Currently, the railway line still retains its ancient architectural structures, especially Da Lat station, the oldest railway station in Indochina (recognized by the Ministry of Culture and Information as a national-level cultural and architectural relic on December 26, 2001). However, related station facilities such as warehouses, platforms, locomotive and carriage storage areas, and locomotive repair tunnels have seriously deteriorated.

The ups and downs of this railway line's history

The Da Lat - Trai Mat railway line is the only remaining operational section of the Da Lat - Thap Cham rack railway. This legendary railway is one of only two rack railways in the world that climb mountains.

The railway station is a famous architectural landmark dating back to the French colonial era.

Beginning in 1893, the French physician Alexandre Yersin led an expedition to the western mountainous region of the South Central coast. On June 21, 1893, the expedition discovered the Langbiang Plateau. In 1899, Yersin accompanied Governor-General Paul Doumer on a survey of the Langbiang Plateau and developed a plan for the Da Lat resort area, with the primary focus being the establishment of a transportation route from the lowlands to the plateau. In 1901, Paul Doumer signed a decree establishing the Thap Cham - Da Lat railway line.

The construction of the Thap Cham-Da Lat railway, from 1912 to 1920, only completed 38 km from Phan Rang to Krong Pha at the foot of Ngoan Muc Pass. In 1922, construction resumed on the section from Krong Pha to Da Lat. This was the most difficult and complex section, as it required building the railway across high mountain ranges and numerous deep ravines and waterfalls.

Currently, Da Lat railway station is an attractive tourist destination.

By 1932, the Thap Cham-Da Lat railway line, with a total length of 84km, passing through 9 stations, 5 tunnels through the mountains, 2 large bridges, and 2 high passes (Ngoan Muc and Dran), was officially completed at a total cost of over 200 million Francs. The line had 3 sections that ran on cogwheel tracks with a gradient of 12% (while the gradient of the similar Furka Pass line in Switzerland was a maximum of 11.8%), including Song Pha-Eo Gio (altitude from 186m to 991m), Don Duong-Tram Hanh (altitude from 1016m to 1515m), and Da Tho-Trai Mat (altitude from 1402m to 1550m).

After the liberation on April 30, 1975, the Da Lat - Thap Cham railway line resumed operation for 7 trips, but at that time, the Tan My bridge, located in Ninh Son district, Ninh Thuan province, had not yet been repaired, so trains could not reach Thap Cham. Subsequently, the Thap Cham - Krong Pha section was repaired for the first time in 1978 and the second time in 1985, but it could not be put back into operation.

In 1990, the Swiss Railway Company acquired the steam locomotives of the Da Lat - Thap Cham mountain railway. Subsequently, the chassis and drive components for the rack system of the locomotives were also returned to Switzerland in 1997. Since then, almost all traces of the Da Lat - Thap Cham rack railway section have been completely destroyed. The Trai Mat - Da Lat section was restored by the railway industry in 1991 to serve the public and combine with tourism, allowing visitors to enjoy the scenic views on the rack railway.

In 2021, the Prime Minister signed Decision No. 1769/QD-TTg directing that the Phan Rang – Da Lat railway line be given special recognition in the railway network development strategy for the period 2021 – 2030, with a vision to 2050.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/duong-sat-rang-cua-da-lat-trai-mat-xuong-cap-nghiem-trong-sau-gan-100-nam-thang-tram-192231121031034893.htm