Overview of La Traction’s route coverage

La Traction’s vintage trains run on the metre-gauge rail network of the Chemins de fer du Jura in Switzerland (74.2 km). 

The network is made up of 3 lines running across the Franches-Montagnes, an upland plateau about 1000m high in the Cantons of Jura and Neuchatel, and the Bernese Jura.

At each end station, Glovelier, La Chaux-de-Fonds and Tavannes, passengers can change to and from Swiss Federal Railway (SBB).

On leaving Glovelier, the railway follows the naturally wild and intact Combe Tabeillon, climbing steadily at a gradient of 1 in 40 to reach the Franches-Montagnes.

Just after leaving La Chaux-de-Fonds (watch-making town planning inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List), The traveller has a magnificent view towards neighbouring France, while travelling through the typical wooded pastureland of the Franches-Montagnes.

After Tavannes, the trains take a sinuous track and affront extreme gradients (1 in 20) at Tramelan and Les Breuleux.

To find out when the Franches-Montagnes Steam Train runs, consult the timetable