Funiculars
A funicular is a type of self-contained cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a very steep slope, the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalancing each other.
Connected Sites
| Site | Rationale | Link |
| Bom Jesus do Monte | The funicular railway was completed in 1882, ..., providing an alternative access up the mount. (AB ev) | |
| Budapest | Budapest Castle Hill Funicular (opened 1870, 75m length): It links the Adam Clark Square and the Széchenyi Chain Bridge at river level to Buda Castle above. | |
| Graz | Schlossbergbahn - built 1894 | |
| Great Spa Towns of Europe | Infrastructure such as funiculars (for example at Bad Ems, Karlovy Vary and Montecatini Terme) facilitated access to lookout towers, restaurants and specific features of interest (AB ev) | |
| Greater Blue Mountains | Katoomba Scenic Railway | |
| Guanajuato | Runs from Juarez Theater to El Pipila monument, 76m in height | |
| Hallstatt-Dachstein | A funicular connects Hallstatt with the salt mine above the town | |
| Ironbridge Gorge | Hay Inclined Plane ("It can be considered a specialised type of funicular railway") | |
| Kii Mountain Range | Koyasan cable car, "The line opened in 1930 as a route to Mount Kōya" | |
| Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces | Lavaux - funiculaire Vevey - Chardonne - Mont Pèlerin | |
| Lyon | Two operational ones: (1) opened in 1878 linking Saint-Jean to Saint-Just with an intermediate station at Minimes, climbing the Fourvière hill; (2) opened in 1900, linking the Tour Metallique on Fourvière hill to Saint-Paul and the Basilica on Fourvière with Saint-Jean. | |
| Naples | Central Funicular | |
| Odesa | Potemkin Stairs: "On the left side of the stairs, a funicular railway was built in 1906 to transport people up and down instead of walking. After 73 years of operation (with breaks caused by revolution and war), the funicular was replaced by an escalator in 1970.[2] The escalator was in turn closed in 1997 but a new funicular was opened on 2 September 2005." (wiki) | |
| Old City of Berne | Marzilibahn, built in 1885 | |
| Prague | Petřín funicular (1891): it links the Malá Strana district with the top of Petřín hill. | |
| Québec | Old Quebec Funicular (opened 1879, 64m long) links the Haute-Ville (Upper Town) at Dufferin Terrace to the Basse-Ville (Lower Town) at Rue du Petit-Champlain. | |
| Salzburg | (1) Reisszug: ".. a private funicular railway providing goods access to the Hohensalzburg Castle.. notable for its extreme age, as it is believed to date back to either 1495 or 1504". (2) Festungbahn: "The Festungsbahn is a funicular railway providing public access to the Hohensalzburg Castle at Salzburg in Austria. It links the castle with Festungsgasse, under the north side of the castle walls. The Festungsbahn opened in 1892 . . . " (Wiki) | |
| Skocjan Caves | Gets you up from the exit of the caves to the visitor center | |
| The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales | "Llechwedd Deep Mine Tour which has the steepest narrow gauge railway in the UK and travels over 500 feet underground to the disused slate caverns" (wiki) | |
| Valparaiso | 7 are still in use | |
| Vilnius | Funicular up Gedminas Hill (site of Gedminas tower - only surviving part of the Upper Castle), built in 2003 |
Suggestions?
Do you know of another WHS we could connect to Funiculars?
A connection should:
- Not be "self evident"
- Link at least 3 different sites
- Not duplicate or merely subdivide the "Category" assignment already identified on this site.
- Add some knowledge or insight (whether significant or trivial!) about WHS for the users of this site
- Be explained, with reference to a source