From December 13, 2020, 4 million tourists will be able to travel more easily between the Vaud and Bernese Alps thanks to what has been dubbed “The Wonder Train: The Goldenpass Express MOB.”
The MOB, acronym for (Montreux Oberland Bernese), is the train redesigned by Pininfarina for the railway company that takes care of the connections between some of the most evocative Swiss destinations.
The new train will connect 3 tourist centers – Montreux, Gstaad, and Interlaken – increasing its attractiveness as transportation. The MOB represents a challenge made possible by a revolutionary variable gauge trolley that will allow passing from the narrow rail to the normal rail in a few seconds, allowing travelers not to change trains at the Zweisimmen station.
“Finding ourselves in front of new safety standards was a stimulus, rather than a limitation, to our creativity,” explained Alfredo Palma, Pininfarina design project manager. “In every project, from automotive to architecture, our goal remains to create beautiful objects overcoming technical or regulatory obstacles. With MOB, we have created a train that offers an immersive travel experience, in total symbiosis with the beauty of the surrounding nature.”
Pininfarina collaborated with MOB in 1993 by redesigning the Cristal Panoramic Express, one of the most photographed trains by tourists. Palama has extensive experience in the railway sector; in fact, he designed the interiors and exteriors of high-speed trains in Italy (the famous Etr500, the first Italian project for a high-speed train which appeared in 1985 and was adopted by Trenitalia) and in Spain.
Over the years, the Turin-based company has designed carriages for the Swiss, Danish, and Norwegian railways; the light rail system operating in Lille, France; and trams currently operating in various cities in Italy, Greece, Sweden, and Turkey. It also dealt with the exterior and interior colors of the new Eurostar e320, whose capacity is over 900 passengers at a speed of 320 km per hour.
