The colourfull TU2-096 on the Erevan pioneer railway in September 1999.
Photo: Quirinus Reichen.
The colourfull TU2-096 on the Erevan pioneer railway in September 1999.
Photo: Quirinus Reichen.
This is one of the oldest pioneer railways in the former USSR, and at the same time the last operational narrow gauge railway using class TU2s in Armenia. The line on the left bank of the River Razdan was opened in 1937. It is 2 km long.
Originally steam traction was used, of course. But already in 1959 TU2-116 was obtained from the Tselinograd railway region in Northern-Kazakhstan. The last report on this loco dates back to 1987, so it might have been cut meanwhile.
Also TU2-096 has worked here, probably since the early 1970s so. In 1999 it was still working.
This town is also known as Leninakan. A pioneer was operated here, which ran on a mountain near the Circassian Gorge. It was approximately 2 km long and used an unidentified class TU2 diesel engine, three Pafawag passenger coaches and a steam engine. The line closed on 7 December 1988 following an earthquake.
