Top 10 Highest Railway Lines in the World

The railways ranked here use the maximum elevation of a working passenger or freight line, and closed or unfinished routes are labelled rather than mixed in. Rank is by the maximum elevation of a working passenger or freight line, and closed branches or unfinished routes are labelled rather than mixed into the same official product ^[1][2][3]. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway, the Xining-Golmud-Lhasa line, is first. Guinness World Records gives it the title of highest railway line, with its highest point at Tanggula Pass, 5,072 metres, and gives Tanggula Railway Station the separate title of highest railway station, at 5,068 metres ^[1][2]. Official Chinese accounts in 2026 still describe the 5,072-metre pass as the line's highest point, and the railway remains in passenger service ^[3]. Unfinished sections of other Tibetan railways are not used as a silent replacement. The Rio Mulatos-Potosí line in Bolivia is second, at 4,786 metres at Cóndor, a working freight summit with no regular passenger service since 2021, a status that is labelled rather than used to drop a working line from the ten ^[4][5]. The Lima-Huancayo line of Ferrocarril Central Andino is third. The current mainline summit is the Galera tunnel, officially about 4,781 to 4,783 metres; closed branches at La Cima, about 4,818 metres, and the Volcán Mine spur, about 4,830 metres, are no longer in service and are not used to overtake Cóndor ^[6][7].

Later names remain in the same official working-line class. The Salta-Antofagasta line, Argentina's C-14, has a published line maximum of 4,475 metres at Abra Chorrillos and remains in use for mineral freight; the Tren a las Nubes tourist service reaches only the La Polvorilla viaduct, at 4,220 metres, a labelled passenger limit on the same working line, not a second official summit ^[8][9]. The Cuzco-Lake Titicaca line in Peru reaches 4,313 metres at La Raya ^[4]. The Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway reaches 4,301 metres at the summit of Pikes Peak; it is a rack railway, reopened in 2021, and that type is labelled ^[4]. The Quito-Guayaquil line once crested 3,609 metres at Urbina, but the national service has been suspended since 2020 and the Urbina tourist section is not in regular service in 2026, so that former summit is labelled and left out of the working ten ^[10]. The Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway reaches 3,608 metres in the Qilianshan No. 2 Tunnel and is the outstanding official high-speed summit in this ten ^[4]. The Jungfrau Railway reaches 3,454 metres at Jungfraujoch, the outstanding official European rack summit ^[4]. The Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad reaches 3,414 metres at Leadville ^[4]. The Gornergrat Railway reaches 3,090 metres, the outstanding official open-air European summit; the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad, at 3,054 metres, sits just outside ^[4]. This article does not copy official crests, flags, operator logos, or exact station-facade copies as decorative art.

Key Facts

The ten below are the labelled official working-line leaders: the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, 5,072 metres at Tanggula Pass and 5,068 metres at Tanggula Station; the Rio Mulatos-Potosí line, 4,786 metres at Cóndor, working freight, no regular passenger service since 2021; the Lima-Huancayo current mainline, about 4,781 to 4,783 metres at the Galera tunnel, with closed higher branches labelled; the Salta-Antofagasta line, 4,475 metres at Abra Chorrillos on working freight, with passenger service to 4,220 metres at La Polvorilla; the Cuzco-Lake Titicaca line, 4,313 metres at La Raya; the Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway, 4,301 metres, a rack railway; the Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway, 3,608 metres; the Jungfrau Railway, 3,454 metres; the Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad, 3,414 metres; and the Gornergrat Railway, 3,090 metres ^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]}. Rank 1 is the outstanding official working-line elevation, which is also the only line in the ten given Guinness titles for both the highest railway line and the highest railway station.

The table is the official spine: the maximum elevation of a working passenger or freight line first, closed branches and unfinished routes labelled, and no silent substitution of a closed 4,830-metre spur or a suspended 3,609-metre Ecuadorian summit.

Highest Railway Lines at a Glance

1. Qinghai-Tibet Railway

The Qinghai-Tibet Railway, the Xining-Golmud-Lhasa line, is first. Guinness World Records gives it the title of highest railway line, with its highest point at 5,072 metres, and gives Tanggula Railway Station the separate title of highest railway station, at 5,068 metres ^[1][2]. Official Chinese accounts, including a 2026 dispatch, still describe the Tanggula Pass, at 5,072 metres, as the line's highest point, and passenger trains continue to run ^[3]. The two official figures are a pass elevation and a station elevation, and both are labelled rather than mixed into a single unofficial exact. Unfinished high sections of other planned Tibetan railways are not used as a silent replacement. This article records the official 5,072-metre line maximum and the official 5,068-metre station.

It is first as the outstanding official working-line elevation, a labelled Guinness fact, and the documentary centre of this ten ^[1][2][3]. A later official resurvey, or the later opening of a higher finished line, will belong in a revision of the cell.

Guinness World Records and official Chinese accounts of the still-operating line are the sources ^[1][2][3].

2. Rio Mulatos-Potosí line

The Rio Mulatos-Potosí line in Bolivia is second, at 4,786 metres at Cóndor ^[4][5]. The summit remains a working freight elevation. Regular passenger service on the branch has not run since 2021, and that status is labelled rather than used to drop a working line from a passenger-or-freight ranking ^[5]. The figure is slightly above the current official mainline summit of the Lima-Huancayo railway, and slightly below the closed Peruvian branches that are no longer in service ^[6][7]. This article records the official 4,786-metre working-freight summit.

It is second as the outstanding official 4,786-metre working-freight summit, a labelled passenger-status fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Lima-Huancayo railway ^[4][5]. A later official revision, or a later restoration of passenger service, will belong in a revision of the cell.

Related: Top 10 Longest Railway Lines in the World

Standard and operator accounts of the Rio Mulatos-Potosí line and of Cóndor station are the sources ^[4][5].

3. Lima-Huancayo railway

The Lima-Huancayo railway, operated by Ferrocarril Central Andino, has a current official mainline summit at the Galera tunnel of about 4,781 to 4,783 metres, with the company's own tourist-route figures given as 4,781 and 4,782 metres ^[6][7]. Closed branches at La Cima, about 4,818 metres, and the Volcán Mine spur, about 4,830 metres, once stood higher than Cóndor, but they are no longer in service and are not used here to overtake the working Bolivian freight summit ^[6]. The highway pass at Ticlio, about 4,818 metres, is a road elevation, not the current railway summit. This article records the current official working-mainline figures and labels the closed higher branches. The line remains in freight and tourist-passenger service in 2026.

It is third as the outstanding official 4,781-to-4,783-metre working mainline, a labelled closed-branch fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Salta-Antofagasta railway ^[6][7]. A later official resurvey will belong in a revision of the cell.

Official Ferrocarril Central Andino accounts, with the closed-branch elevations labelled, are the sources ^[6][7].

4. Salta-Antofagasta railway

The Salta-Antofagasta railway, the C-14 of the Belgrano network, has a published line maximum of 4,475 metres at Abra Chorrillos and remains in use for mineral freight, including renewed mining-supply trains on the high C-14 in 2025 ^[8][9]. The Tren a las Nubes tourist service reaches only the La Polvorilla viaduct, at 4,220 metres; that is a labelled passenger limit on the same working line, not a second official summit and not evidence that the higher freight elevation has closed ^[8][9]. This article records the official 4,475-metre working-line maximum and the 4,220-metre passenger limit.

It is fourth as the outstanding official 4,475-metre working-freight summit, a labelled passenger-limit fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Cuzco-Lake Titicaca railway ^[8][9]. A later official resurvey will belong in a revision of the cell.

Official and standard accounts of the C-14, including 2025 freight operations and the Tren a las Nubes passenger limit, are the sources ^[8][9].

Related: Top 10 Longest Rail Tunnels in the World

5. Cuzco-Lake Titicaca railway

The Cuzco-Lake Titicaca railway in Peru reaches 4,313 metres at La Raya ^[4]. The figure is the maximum elevation of a working passenger line, not a closed mining branch, and not a silent combination with the Lima-Huancayo railway. This article records the official 4,313-metre La Raya summit. It stands just above the Pikes Peak cog railway and well below the Salta-Antofagasta freight maximum.

It is fifth as the outstanding official 4,313-metre working passenger summit, a labelled fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway ^[4]. A later official resurvey will belong in a revision of the cell.

Standard official accounts of the Cuzco-Lake Titicaca railway and of La Raya are the source ^[4].

6. Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway

The Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway reaches 4,301 metres at the summit of Pikes Peak ^[4]. It is a rack, or cog, railway, reopened in 2021 after a reconstruction, and that type is labelled rather than treated as an adhesion mainline of Lima-Huancayo type. The figure is the maximum elevation of a working passenger line, not a closed Colorado mining road, and not a silent combination with the Leadville adhesion line lower in this ten. This article records the official 4,301-metre working summit.

It is sixth as the outstanding official 4,301-metre working rack railway, a labelled 2021 reopening fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway ^[4]. A later official resurvey will belong in a revision of the cell.

Official and standard accounts of the Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway are the source ^[4].

Related: Top 10 Busiest Railway Stations in the World

7. Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway

The Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway reaches 3,608 metres in the Qilianshan No. 2 Tunnel and is the outstanding official high-speed summit in this ten ^[4]. The figure is the maximum elevation of a working passenger high-speed line, not a conventional Qinghai-Tibet summit, and not a silent combination with every other official Chinese high-altitude railway. The former Quito-Guayaquil summit at Urbina, 3,609 metres, is almost the same number, but that Ecuadorian section is not in regular working service in 2026 and is not used as a silent replacement ^[10]. This article records the official 3,608-metre working high-speed summit.

It is seventh as the outstanding official 3,608-metre high-speed summit, a labelled fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Jungfrau Railway ^[4]. A later official resurvey will belong in a revision of the cell.

Official and standard accounts of the Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway are the source ^[4].

8. Jungfrau Railway

The Jungfrau Railway reaches 3,454 metres at Jungfraujoch, the outstanding official European rack summit, and runs underground above 2,350 metres ^[4]. The figure is the maximum elevation of a working passenger rack railway, not an adhesion Alpine mainline, and not a silent combination with the Gornergrat line. This article records the official 3,454-metre working summit.

It is eighth as the outstanding official 3,454-metre European rack summit, a labelled fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad ^[4]. A later official resurvey will belong in a revision of the cell.

Official and standard accounts of the Jungfrau Railway are the source ^[4].

9. Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad

The Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad reaches 3,414 metres at Leadville and is the outstanding official North American adhesion summit in this later list ^[4]. The figure is the maximum elevation of a working tourist adhesion line, not a rack railway of Pikes Peak type, and not a closed Colorado narrow-gauge summit used as a substitute. This article records the official 3,414-metre working summit.

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It is ninth as the outstanding official 3,414-metre North American adhesion summit, a labelled fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Gornergrat Railway ^[4]. A later official resurvey will belong in a revision of the cell.

Official and standard accounts of the Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad are the source ^[4].

10. Gornergrat Railway

The Gornergrat Railway reaches 3,090 metres at Gornergrat, the outstanding official open-air European summit in this ten ^[4]. The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad, at 3,054 metres on Cumbres Pass, sits just outside ^[4]. The figure is the maximum elevation of a working passenger rack railway, not a silent combination with the Jungfrau line, and not a closed Alpine summit. This article records the official 3,090-metre working summit as the last named line in the ranking.

It is tenth as the outstanding official 3,090-metre open-air European summit, a labelled fact, and a necessary counterpart to the Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad ^[4]. A later official revision, or a later opened working line that belongs above 3,090 metres, will belong in a revision of the ten.

Official and standard accounts of the Gornergrat Railway are the source ^[4].

Conclusion

A 2026 highest-railway-lines list has to keep the Qinghai-Tibet Railway at the official 5,072-metre Tanggula Pass and the official 5,068-metre Tanggula Station, keep closed Peruvian branches and the suspended Urbina summit out of the working ten, and refuse to treat an unfinished Tibetan project as a silent official cell ^{[1][2][3][6][10]}. The Rio Mulatos-Potosí freight summit, the current Lima-Huancayo mainline, the Salta-Antofagasta freight maximum, the Cuzco-Lake Titicaca line, the Pikes Peak cog railway, the Lanzhou-Xinjiang high-speed railway, the Jungfrau Railway, the Leadville adhesion line, and the Gornergrat Railway complete a named ten in which working status, rack or adhesion type, and closed-branch elevations are stated in the open ^{[4][5][7][8][9]}. The useful habit is the maximum elevation of a working line, a labelled status, and a refusal to mix a closed spur into a current official summit.

A later official opening or closure will belong in a revision of a cell; it will not change the method. Those labelled official elevations are the spine of the list, and they will still be the spine after a later railway authority has restated a working summit in a later year.