Val Gardena Railway

The Val Gardena Railway or Klausen-Plan was a 760 mm narrow gauge railway operating in the Val Gardena in the Dolomites of northern Italy. It was constructed in 1915/6 when the region was part of the Austrian Empire. Construction was remarkably rapid: begun in September 1915, the line was completed and opened on 6 February 1916. This feat was accomplished by the conscripted labour of some 6,000 Russian prisoners of war.