Google Street View hits Swiss Alps railways

BANGALORE, INDIA: From the Amazon to the ancient ruins of Pompeii, Street View technology has put imagery of some of the world's most interesting and significant sites online for everyone to enjoy.

According to Google, the Street View team collected the images from one of the world's most scenic railway routes, the Albula-Bernina line in Switzerland, in cooperation with Rhaetian Railway.

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The search engine company also announced that, the images will be available to Google maps users very soon.

"It's unique to see technology and architecture like this in a natural landscape, and the route is a popular tourist destination offering amazing photography opportunities," said Ulf Spitzer, Street View Program Manager, Europe in a blog post.

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Spitzer further added that, to capture the scenery for Street View, we mounted our trike, a three-wheel pedicab with a camera system on top to a flatbed at the front of a train.

As the train travelled along the line, cameras facing nine different directions captured still photos of the surrounding areas that we're now stitching together into 360-degree panoramic views, Spitzer added.

Soon, we'll publish the imagery on Google Maps for people around the globe to enjoy and experience themselves. The imagery will provide admirers of this route with completely new perspectives, and also help document and preserve this UNESCO World Heritage site, says Spitzer.