Portal:Brighton/Selected article

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Volk's Electric Railway (VER) is the oldest operating electric railway in the world. It is a narrow gauge railway that runs along a length of the seafront of the English seaside resort of Brighton. It was built by Magnus Volk, with the first section being completed in 1883.

Today the line runs between terminal stations at the Sea Life Centre ("Aquarium", adjacent to the Palace Pier) and Black Rock (adjacent to Brighton Marina), with an intermediate station and depot at Paston Place. The line has a gauge of 2 ft. 8½ in. (825 mm), is electrified at 150 V DC using a third rail, and is 1¼ miles (2 km) long.

The initial 1883 line was intended as a temporary summer attraction and ran for only ¼ mile (400 m) between "Swimming Arch" and the Chain Pier. It was built to a gauge of 2 ft. (609 mm) and electrical power was supplied to the cars using the two running rails, at 50 V DC. In 1884 the line was extended from the Chain Pier to Paston Place, the gauge widened to 2ft. 9 in. (838 mm), and the electrical supply increased to 150 V DC. In 1886 a third rail was added to avoid power loss along the extended line, and the gauge tightened up to its current 2 ft. 8½ in.