Funicular de Santa Cova
Encyclopedia
Funicular
A funicular, also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a steep slope; the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalance each other.-Operation:The basic principle of funicular...
at Montserrat
Montserrat (mountain)
Montserrat is a multi-peaked mountain located near the city of Barcelona, in Catalonia, Spain. It is part of the Catalan Pre-Coastal Range. The main peaks are Sant Jeroni , Montgrós and Miranda de les Agulles...
, near Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
in Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. The line descends from the monastery
Santa Maria de Montserrat
Santa Maria de Montserrat is a Benedictine abbey located on the mountain of Montserrat, in Monistrol de Montserrat, in Catalonia, Spain.It hosts the Virgin of Montserrat, and the Publicacions de l'Abadia de Montserrat, a publishing house, one of the oldest presses in the world still running, with...
, and the upper terminus of the Montserrat Rack Railway
Montserrat Rack Railway
The Montserrat Rack Railway is a mountain railway line north of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. The line runs from Monistrol de Montserrat to the mountain-top monastery of Montserrat....
, on a continuous curve to a lower station that gives access, via a path, to Santa Cova, a shrine lower down the mountain.
The funicular has the following technical parameters:
- Length: 262 m (859.6 ft)
- Height: 118 m (387.1 ft)
- Maximum steepness: 56.5%
- Cars: 2
- Capacity: 90 passengers per car
- Configuration: Single trackSingle track (rail)A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....
with passing loopPassing loopA passing loop is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at a station, where trains or trams in opposing directions can pass each other. Trains/trams in the same direction can also overtake, providing that the signalling arrangement allows it... - Travel time: 2.5 minutes
- Track gauge:
- Traction: Electrical
Although the line operates two cars, in normal service only one carries passengers, whilst the other simply acts as a counterweight.
The line is operated by the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya
Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya
Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya , or FGC, is a railway company which operates several unconnected lines in Catalonia, Spain....
(Catalan Government Railways, FGC), who also operate the Montserrat Rack Railway and the Funicular de Sant Joan
Funicular de Sant Joan
The Funicular de Sant Joan is a funicular railway at Montserrat, near Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. The line connects the monastery, and the upper terminus of the Montserrat Rack Railway, with sacred sites, walking trails and viewpoints higher up the mountain...
funicular railway on Montserrat Mountain, together with two other funicular railways and a significant suburban railway system in and around Barcelona.
The line originally opened in 1929 and was passed to the FGC in 1986. It was renovated in 1991 with the retention of its original stepped and wooden bodied cars. Unfortunately one of these was damaged by floods in 2000, as was the lower station. When the line reopened in 2001, new panoramic cars, similar to those already in use on the nearby Funicular de Sant Joan
Funicular de Sant Joan
The Funicular de Sant Joan is a funicular railway at Montserrat, near Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. The line connects the monastery, and the upper terminus of the Montserrat Rack Railway, with sacred sites, walking trails and viewpoints higher up the mountain...
, were provided.
External links
- Official website of the Montserrat Rack Railway and associated funicular railways (in CatalanCatalan languageCatalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
, SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
) - Photographic description and map of the line from Trens de Catalunya (in Catalan)