Steam locomotives to run until midnight in Vienna Prater

Two historic steam locomotives will run until midnight on Friday as part of the Liliputbahn’s Long Night in Vienna’s Prater, ORF reported.

The railway’s route is almost four kilometres long, running from the Prater Hauptbahnhof near the Giant Ferris Wheel through the Wurstelprater and the wooded part of the Green Prater towards Ernst Happel Stadium and back.

The journey takes 20 minutes in open carriages. Passengers can also use a covered salon carriage equipped with four table lamps. The Liliputbahn normally operates only during the day, but its schedule has been extended until midnight for the event.

The railway has a track gauge of 15 inches, or 38 centimetres. It has been operating since 1928, making it the oldest railway of its kind in Europe.

Four diesel locomotives, in service since the 1960s, are kept in the engine shed. The main attractions, however, are two original steam locomotives that are more than 90 years old. They are now used only occasionally, on busy days such as weekends and event days.