The Vallvidrera Funicular (both Catalan and Spanish:Funicular de Vallvidrera) 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 en ...

in the

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

district of

Sarrià-Sant Gervasi Sarrià-Sant Gervasi is one of the biggest districts of Barcelona. It's the district with the highest per capita income, the largest proportion of university degrees and the lowest unemployment rate. Situated on the north-west of the city, surr ...

, in

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the no ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

. It connects Peu del Funicular station on the

Barcelona–Vallès Line The Barcelona–Vallès Line ( ca, Línia Barcelona-Vallès) is an unconnected standard gauge rapid transit and commuter rail, commuter railway line linking Barcelona with Sabadell and Terrassa via the Collserola mountain range, in Catalonia, Sp ...

with the residential neighborhood of

Vallvidrera Vallvidrera is a neighbourhood of the Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district of Barcelona, Spain. It is situated in one of the sides of the Collserola hills, considered to be the lungs of the city due to the abundant forests it has. This wealthy neighbou ...

, in the Collserola mountain range. Opened on , 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 The Generalitat de Catalunya (; oc, label= Aranese, Generalitat de Catalonha; es, Generalidad de Cataluña), or the Government of Catalonia, is the institutional system by which Catalonia politically organizes its self-government. It is formed ...

together with the Barcelona–Vallès Line after FSB's economic collapse. Thus, since , the funicular has been operated by

Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (, "Catalan Government Railways"), or FGC, is a railway company which operates several unconnected lines in Catalonia, Spain. The lines operated include metro and commuter lines in and around the city o ...

(FGC). In 1998, it was entirely rebuilt and upgraded to an

automated guideway transit An automated guideway transit (AGT) or automated fixed-guideway transit or automatic guideway transit system is a type of fixed guideway transit infrastructure with a riding or suspension track that supports and physically guides one or more dr ...

(AGT) system, including the introduction of new rolling stock. The funicular is integrated as part of the

Vallès Metro El Vallès (or simply Vallès) is a historical county in Catalonia, Spain, located in the center of the Catalan Pre-Coastal Range. It is nowadays represented by two separate administrative divisions ( ''comarques'') which are part of the Barce ...

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 The Metropolitan Transport Authority ( ca, Autoritat del Transport Metropolità, ATM) is a public consortium intended to coordinate the operation and project the expansion of the public transport system in the Barcelona metropolitan area. It is m ...

(ATM) fare-integrated public transport system for the

Barcelona metropolitan area The Barcelona urban area is an urban area in Catalonia (Spain) centered on the city of Barcelona and located less than 100 km south of the border with France. With a population of over 5 million, it is the most populous urban area on the Me ...

History

The line was opened in 1906. Its upper station (Vallvidrera Superior) was designed by the architects

Bonaventura Conill i Montobbio Bonaventura may refer to: * Bonaventura (given name), given name * Bonaventura (surname), surname * Bonaventura (VTA), light-rail station in San Jose, United States of America * ''Signor Bonaventura'', an Italian comic strip * Bonaventura Heinz Hou ...

and

Arnald Calvet i Peyronill Arnald may refer to: Names *Jan Arnald (b. 1963), Swedish novelist and literary critic *George Arnald (1763–1841), British painter *Richard Arnald (1698–1756), English clergyman and biblical scholar *William Arnald (-1802), English clergyman an ...

in the

Catalan Modernist ''Modernisme'' (, Catalan for "modernism"), also known as Catalan modernism and Catalan art nouveau, is the historiographic denomination given to an art and literature movement associated with the search of a new entitlement of Catalan culture ...

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 Platform screen doors (PSDs), also known as platform edge doors (PEDs), are used at some train, rapid transit and people mover stations to separate the platform from train tracks, as well as on some bus rapid transit, tram and light rail sys ...

and fully automated operation. The new cars were built by Gangloff of

Bern german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese , neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen , website ...

Technical features

The funicular has the following technical parameters:

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

at trenscat.cat
Vallvidrera Funicular
at Funiculars.net
Video of the funicular's route
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

{{Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya lines Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya Funicular railways in Barcelona Railway lines opened in 1906 Transport in Sarrià-Sant Gervasi Metre gauge railways in Spain 1906 establishments in Spain