Aigle–Sépey–Diablerets Railway

The Aigle–Sépey–Diablerets (ASD) Railway is the product of a Swiss Parliament approval on October 24th, 1898 to build and operate a railway between Aigle, Le Sépey and Leysin. Together, these three towns offer a path to the Berneuse mountains.

The first link on this chain was opened in 1840, connecting Aigle to Le Sépey by road with services provided by stagecoach, pre-dating the coming of the railway. In October 1898, the Swiss Parliament approved an application by the ASD to build and operate a railway between Aigle, Le Sépey and Leysin. Nine months later, construction was underway.

But on June 26th, 1940, ASD suffered its worst tragedy: a fire broke out destroying its depot and many more valuable resources. The railway, three electric cars, and four passenger cars were destroyed in the fire, threatening future operations of the ASD. While there were talks of abandoning a railway burned beyond repair, officials decided to restore ASD and bring rolling stock in from other lines to make up for damaged cars.

Today, Aigle’s railway station is still served by the trains of the Swiss Federal Railways. While taking in the alpine valley views, riders can travel from Aigle to Diablerets in 50 minutes.