Suche
Mein Konto
Last ÖBB cable car: Red gondola receives pride of place in the Technical Museum!
The historic gondola of the Stubach-Weißsee-Bahn was handed over to the Vienna Technical Museum in 2025 and remains as a technical monument.
Last ÖBB cable car: Red gondola receives pride of place in the Technical Museum!
June 17, 2025 is a special day for all technology and transport history enthusiasts in Vienna. The striking red gondola of the Stubach-Weißsee-Bahn has its new home in Technical Museum Vienna found. After more than 70 years in use, the gondola is now part of the museum's permanent mobility exhibition and thus becomes a symbol of sustainable infrastructure and Austrian transport history.
The Stubach-Weißsee Railway was built in 1951 to transport both material and passengers to the Tauernmoos and Weißsee reservoirs in the Stubachtal. According to the circumstances of the time, it was the only passenger cable car of the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB). Johann Pluy from ÖBB-Infrastructure AG? stated during the official handover that the gondola is not only a piece of technological history, but also represents the future - because it represents environmentally friendly transport solutions.
A piece of history
The leading role of the Stubach-Weißsee Railway as part of the region's infrastructure is also underpinned by its technical peculiarity: goods could be lowered into the middle station and transported via a double-track rail system. However, due to the construction of a new access tunnel as part of a tourism project, the cable car was no longer used for public transport. Their last trip took place on August 31, 2023, since then most of the railway systems have been dismantled and the areas earmarked for renaturation.
During the handover in the Technical Museum, Peter Aufreiter, the general director of the museum, emphasized the importance of the gondola for Austria's transport history and emphasized how important it is to preserve such technical monuments for future generations. In addition to the gondola, a special exhibition celebrating the railway's 200th anniversary will also open in autumn 2025. This exhibition will deal intensively with the history and future of rail transport in Europe. Visitors can look forward to exciting content, interactive elements and numerous railway models.
Technical data
| feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Max payload | 2 tons |
| Max. speed | 6 m/s |
| Number of gondolas | 4 passenger and 6 material gondolas |
| Total length | approx. 3,100 meters |
| Height difference | approx. 850 meters |
The handover of the gondola is not only another chapter in the history of the Technical Museum, but also a sign of a growing awareness of historical and technical achievements. Such initiatives not only help preserve our past but also inspire the next generation to explore the world of technology. Further exciting details about the history of rail transport in Europe can be found in the upcoming publication on the railway's 200th anniversary, which will be published in Technical Museum Vienna appears.