The Como–Brunate funicular (Italian: ''Funicolare Como-Brunate'') is a

funicular railway A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite e ...

that connects the city of

Como Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label=Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Its proximity to Lake Como and to the Alps has m ...

with the village of

Brunate Brunate (Comasco: ) is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Como in northern Italy, some northeast of Milan. It has some 1,800 residents, but is much more populated in summer, when tourists rent houses and apartments. The town overlooks C ...

in Lombardy,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. The line has operated since 1894, and is used by both tourists and local residents.

History

The funicular was opened in 1894 and was originally operated using a

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be ...

. In 1911 the traction system was converted to use an

electric motor An electric motor is an electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a wire winding to generate forc ...

. The line was refurbished in 1934/5 and again in 1951, when new cars were provided. In 1981 ownership of the funicular was transferred from the private ''Società Anonima Funicolare Como/Brunate'' to the government of the region of Lombardy. In 2005 the management of the funicular, along with Como's local bus service, was transferred to a local company, the ''Consorzio Mobilità Funicolare & Bus''. The ''Consorzio'' further subcontracts the operation of the funicular to the ''Azienda Trasporti Milanesi S.p.A.''. In mid-August 2011, the funicular reopened after an overhaul costing

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

800,000. New cars were constructed for the line by Gangloff at a cost of €1 million each. The new cars are air-conditioned, long and wide, and carry 81 passengers. The cars are painted in contrasting colours, one being lilac and the other red.

Route

The lower station is situated adjacent to the

Lake Como Lake Como ( it, Lago di Como , ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh de Còmm , ''Cómm'' or ''Cùmm'' ), also known as Lario (; after the la, Larius Lacus), is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the thir ...

quayside to the north-east of Como city centre. It is some north of the ''Como Lago'' railway station served by

Trenord Trenord is a railway company which is responsible for the operation of regional passenger trains in Lombardy. The company was established by the two main railway companies in Lombardy, Trenitalia and Ferrovie Nord Milano (FNM), to manage train o ...

train services to

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 ...

and east of the ''Como San Giovanni'' railway station on the main Zurich to Milan railway. The line is long, of which the lower are in

tunnel A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...

. The remainder of the line is at or above ground level, with extensive views over the lake and city. There are two intermediate stops, served on request. The upper station is situated in the centre of Brunate, with entrances and exits at both upper and lower levels. At the upper level, a piazza separates the station from the machine room, which has a gallery allowing public viewing of the haulage machinery. The surrounding area has vistas over Como and the lake, and is the starting point of many trails into the surrounding hills.

Operation

The line has the following parameters:

References

External links

*
Official web site of the Como–Brunate funicularVideo of ascent of the Como–Brunate funicular

{{DEFAULTSORT:Como-Brunate funicular Funicular railways in Italy Railway lines in Lombardy Railway lines opened in 1894 Metre gauge railways in Italy

History

Route

Operation

See also

References

External links