The Solis Viaduct is a single track eleven-arched limestone

Limestone

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 railway

Rail transport

Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...

 viaduct

Viaduct

A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...

. It spans the Albula River

Albula River

Albula is a river of Switzerland, a tributary of Hinterrhein . Length: 36 km , Basin: 950 km² ....

 east of the hamlet of Solis, in the Canton

Cantons of Switzerland

The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...

 of Graubünden

Graubünden

Graubünden or Grisons is the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland. The canton shares borders with the cantons of Ticino, Uri, Glarus and St. Gallen and international borders with Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein...

, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

.

Designed by the engineer Hans Studer, it was built in 1902 by Munari, Cayre und Marasi for the Rhaetian Railway, which still owns and uses it today. One of the most important structures on the World Heritage-listed Albula Railway

Albula Railway

In 1890, the Davos hotelier Willem-Jan Holsboer proposed the construction of a rail link from Chur via Davos, and through a tunnel under the Scaletta Pass, to St Moritz, and then onwards via the Maloja Pass, to Chiavenna in Italy. Holsboer later had to abandon this planned Scalettabahn, in favour...

, it is 89 metres (292 ft) high, 164 metres (538.1 ft) long, and has a main span of 42 metres (137.8 ft).

Location

The Solis Viaduct forms part of the Albula Railway section between Thusis

Thusis (Rhaetian Railway station)

Thusis is a railway station in Thusis, Switzerland. It is the terminus of the Landquart-Thusis railway line. Hourly services originating from Chur on that line also continue along the Albula Railway line to St. Moritz.-Rhaetian Railway services:...

 and Tiefencastel

Tiefencastel (Rhaetian Railway station)

Tiefencastel is a railway station in Tiefencastel, Switzerland. It is located on the Albula Railway line from Chur to St. Moritz. Hourly services operate on this section of the line.-Rhaetian Railway services:*RE1/R11 - 1tph...

, and is at the 49.33 kilometres (30.7 mi) mark from Thusis.

Description

The limestone-built viaduct was conceived by Hans Studer as the first stone arch bridge in Switzerland to be designed in accordance with the elasticity theory

Elasticity (physics)

In physics, elasticity is the physical property of a material that returns to its original shape after the stress that made it deform or distort is removed. The relative amount of deformation is called the strain....

. That choice of design allowed the use of a parabolic arch, and thus a very slim form of construction. Building costs could thereby be limited to 125,000 Swiss francs at 1902 prices.

With its height of 89 metres (292 ft), the Solis Viaduct is the highest on the Rhaetian Railway. It consists of a main span of 42 metres (137.8 ft) flanked by 10 other spans ranging from at 8 metres (26.2 ft) to at 10 metres (32.8 ft).

Renovation

In 1997, the viaduct was renovated at great expense. The previous isolation between the gravel bed and walls was filled in by a new sealing system, incorporating liquid plastic film and shotcrete. In addition, the rails and ballast were renewed.

See also

• Glacier Express
  Glacier Express
  The Glacier Express is an express train connecting railway stations of the two major mountain resorts of St. Moritz and Zermatt in the Swiss Alps. The train is operated jointly by the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn and Rhaetian Railway...
  
  
• Bernina Express
  Bernina Express
  The Bernina Express is an express train connecting Chur in Switzerland with Poschiavo and Tirano in Italy, by crossing the Swiss Alps from north to south. For most of its journey, the train also passes along and through the World Heritage Site known as the Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina...
  
  
• Arch bridge
  Arch bridge
  An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
  
  
• Viaduct
  Viaduct
  A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
  
  

• Albula Railway
  Albula Railway
  In 1890, the Davos hotelier Willem-Jan Holsboer proposed the construction of a rail link from Chur via Davos, and through a tunnel under the Scaletta Pass, to St Moritz, and then onwards via the Maloja Pass, to Chiavenna in Italy. Holsboer later had to abandon this planned Scalettabahn, in favour...
  
  
• Rhaetian Railway