The Gelida Funicular (; ) is a

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

railway in the municipality of

Gelida Gelida () is a town and municipality in the ''comarca'' of Alt Penedès, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The town is built on a hillside above the Anoia river The Anoia () is a river in Catalonia, Spain, a tributary of the Llobregat. Most of its ...

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The line connects

Gelida station Gelida () is a town and municipality in the ''comarca'' of Alt Penedès, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The town is built on a hillside above the Anoia river The Anoia () is a river in Catalonia, Spain, a tributary of the Llobregat. Most of its c ...

, on the

RENFE Renfe (, ), officially Renfe-Operadora, is Spain's national state-owned railway company. It was created in 2005 upon the split of the former Spanish National Railway Network (RENFE) into the Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias ( ...

(''Spanish National Railways''), with the centre of the village of Gelida, which is at a higher level. The line was opened in 1924 and modernised in 1984, whilst retaining a heritage ambience. The funicular has the following technical parameters: *Length: ' *Height: ' *Maximum Steepness: ''22.2 %'' *Cars: ''2'' *Capacity: ''50 passengers per car; 700 passengers per hour'' *Configuration: ''

Single track Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

with

passing loop A passing loop (UK usage) or passing siding (North America) (also called a crossing loop, crossing place, refuge loop or, colloquially, a hole) is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at or near a station, where trains o ...

'' *Maximum speed: ' *Travel time: ''8 minutes'' *Track gauge: ' *Traction: ''Electricity'' Although two cars were in operation, as an economy measure only one was normally staffed and carried passengers, whilst the other simply served as a counterweight. Despite this restriction, the funicular was timed to connect with the main line trains, which operate every half-hour on weekdays and hourly on weekends. Besides the two terminals at ''Gelida Inferior'' and ''Superior'', the line served an intermediate request stop at ''Gelida-Baixador'', situated between the passing loop and upper station. In September 2011, the service was suspended due to government's spending cuts, as it was considered too expensive to maintain. Since then the service has been replaced by a shuttle bus, with the funicular operating only at weekends. The service was suspended on 6 March 2016 following a review in which a number of cracks were detected in the rolling elements but is operational again (at weekends) from April 6, 2019. The line is operated by the

Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (, "Catalan Government Railways"; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Ferrocarriles de la Generalidad de Cataluña''), or FGC, is a railway company which operates several unconnected lines in Catalonia, Spain. The lines operated include metro and commu ...

(''Catalan Government Railways'', FGC), who also operate a significant suburban railway system in and around Barcelona, along with three other funiculars and two

rack railway A rack railway (also rack-and-pinion railway, cog railway, or cogwheel railway) is a steep grade railway with a toothed rack rail, usually between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels or pinions that mesh with ...

References

External links

Photographic description and map of the line from Trens de Catalunya
(in Catalan)
Funiculars page from FGC website
(in English) Funicular railways in Catalonia Metre-gauge railways in Spain Transport in Alt Penedès Buildings and structures in the Province of Barcelona {{Catalonia-rail-transport-stub