Vallvidrera Funicular
The Vallvidrera Funicular (Catalan and Spanish: Funicular de Vallvidrera) is a 736.6-metre-long (2,417 ft) funicular railway in the Barcelona district of Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, in Catalonia, Spain. It connects Peu del Funicular station on the Barcelona–Vallès Line with the residential neighborhood of Vallvidrera, in the Collserola mountain range.
Opened on 24 October 1906, the funicular has played a key role in the development of Vallvidrera and is the main public transport access to this neighborhood. Although initially privately owned by Ferrocarril de Sarriá a Barcelona (FSB), it was transferred to the Catalan government together with the Barcelona–Vallès Line after FSB's economic collapse. Thus, since 7 October 1979, the funicular has been operated by Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC). In 1998, it was entirely rebuilt and upgraded to an automated guideway transit (AGT) system, including the introduction of new rolling stock.
The funicular is integrated as part of the Vallès Metro high-frequency commuter rail scheme. It runs at a basic interval of 6 minutes on weekdays, less frequently on weekends and public holidays, with a journey time of 2 minutes and 50 seconds (without considering any intermediate stops). Besides, it is entirely within fare zone 1 of the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM) fare-integrated public transport system for the Barcelona metropolitan area.
History
The line was opened in 1906. Its upper station (Vallvidrera Superior) was designed by the architects Bonaventura Conill i Montobbio and Arnald Calvet i Peyronill in the Catalan Modernist style.
The line became part of the FGC network in 1981. It was rebuilt in 1998, with the introduction of new cars, platform screen doors and fully automated operation. The new cars were built by Gangloff of Bern.
Technical features
The funicular has the following technical parameters:
| Number of stops | 3 |
| Configuration | Single track with passing loop |
| Track length | 729 m (2,392 ft) |
| Rise | 165 m (541 ft) |
| Maximum gradient | 30.9% |
| Track gauge | 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) metre gauge |
| Number of cars | 2 |
| Capacity | 50 passengers per car |
| Maximum speed | 5 m/s (16.4 ft/s) |
| Traction | Electricity |
| Operation | Fully automatic |
List of stations
The following table lists the name of each station on the Vallvidrera Funicular in ascendent order (from south to north), a photo of the current station, its elevation, its coordinates, remarkable notes and usage figures.
Notes
References
Bibliography
External links
- Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC) official website Archived 2018-01-31 at the Wayback Machine
- Vallvidrera Funicular at trenscat.cat (in Catalan)
- Vallvidrera Funicular at Funiculars.net
- Video of the funicular's route on YouTube