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The Bom Jesus do Monte Funicular ( pt, Elevador do Bom Jesus do Monte), is a Portuguese
funicular 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 ...
transport in
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below district ...
of
Nogueiró e Tenões Nogueiró e Tenões is a civil parish in the municipality of Braga, in the Portuguese district of the same name. It was formed in 2013 by the merger of the former parishes Nogueiró and Tenões. The population in 2011 was 5,129,
, in the
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality ...
of
Braga Braga ( , ; cel-x-proto, Bracara) is a city and a municipality, capital of the northwestern Portuguese district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality has a resident population of 193,333 inhabitants (i ...
, in the district of the same name. Operated by the Irmandade de Bom Jesus do Monte the funicular connects the upper-town of Braga with the Shrine on which it gets its name, over a distance that parallels the ''Escadaria de Bom Jesus'' (''Bom Jesus staircase'') to the highest point at the statue of
Saint Longinus Longinus () is the name given to the unnamed Roman soldier who pierced the side of Jesus with a lance and who in medieval and some modern Christian traditions is described as a convert to Christianity. His name first appeared in the apocryphal ...
.


History

Construction on the tramway system began in April 1880, designed by
Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard ( São Nicolau, Porto, 2 April 1848 — Inhambane, Mozambique 26 May 1914) was a Portuguese engineer of French parentage, known for building many elevators and funiculars in Portugal. He is particularly known for his eng ...
, under the direction of Swiss engineer
Nikolaus Riggenbach Niklaus Riggenbach (21 May 1817 – 25 July 1899) was the inventor of the Riggenbach rack system and the counter-pressure brake. He was also an engineer and locomotive builder. Niklaus Riggenbach, from Rünenberg, Basel-Landschaft, Switz ...
, and financed by Bracarense businessman Manuel Joaquim Gomes, the principal shareholder of the Companhia de Carris of Braga. Gomes was interested in replacing the role of the
horsecar A horsecar, horse-drawn tram, horse-drawn streetcar (U.S.), or horse-drawn railway (historical), is an animal-powered (usually horse) tram or streetcar. Summary The horse-drawn tram (horsecar) was an early form of public rail transport, ...
(rail vehicles pulled by horses), which originally stretched to the Bom Jesus sanctuary, but was complemented by oxen up the steep hill on busy days. The trams were constructed by SLM - Oficinas de Olten. Work began in March 1880, with Portuguese engineer of French descent
Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard ( São Nicolau, Porto, 2 April 1848 — Inhambane, Mozambique 26 May 1914) was a Portuguese engineer of French parentage, known for building many elevators and funiculars in Portugal. He is particularly known for his eng ...
supervising the work. The funicular was inaugurated on 25 March 1882, and cost around 30 contos de réis. Its success was such that in the same year Mesnier was invited to design and install a series of funiculars and cable lifts in the Portuguese capital Lisbon, some of which are still in operation today. In 1914, the Companhia de Carris was expropriated by the municipal council, resulting in the municipality exploiting the tourist transport. A campaign of restoration was carried out in 1946 using materials derived from the dismantling of a Mount Train, in the city of
Funchal Funchal () is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Autonomous Region of Madeira, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. The city has a population of 105,795, making it the sixth largest city in Portugal. Because of its high ...
, on the island of
Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...
. But, by the 1970s-1980s, the funicular passed to the responsibility of the Confraria do Bom Jesus do Monte. On 13 March 2003, a dispatch was issued to classify the funicular as national patrimony. Following three months when the service was stopped for restoration, on 10 July 2006, the funicular returned to service. On 18 October 2012, the decision to classify the funicular transport as a ''Monumento de Interesse Público'' was issued (Diário da República, Série 2, 202, Announcement 13592/2012).


Description

The funicular is situated in a rural, isolated location surrounded by luxuriant vegetation, paralleling the Bom Jesus do Monte staircase, and connects the base of the hill with the sanctuary. The funicular's route crosses along the flank of the hill, with an 42º incline, across a rise of . It functions using two parallel tracks, each with its own tram and central rack, laid on wooden sleepers over stone ballast. The trams are connected by a steel cable. Each cabin is long, wide, and has a wheelbase of . The suspension system is made of four helical without dampers and hinged spiral-spring stop brakes. Each tram supports a capacity of seat 30 passengers, with the total capacity of 38 possible across six bunks (that sat five passengers), eight standing and conductor. Each cabin includes two water tanks, with the largest with a capacity for that functioned as a counterweight and supported refrigeration circuit for the brakes, and the small tank with a capacity for that supported the rear brakes. Both trams run is opposite directions, arriving at their opposite stops simultaneously. It is the oldest funicular in the world moved by
water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as ...
counterbalancing, loading water into the car at the top of the hill, weighing it down so it descends to the bottom, at the same time drawing the lighter, drained car up the hill, where the process starts all over again: the trip takes between 2.4 and 4 minutes.


Stations

The base terminal is a rectangular stop, comprising three bodies with the central more elevated then the lateral wings, plastered and painted in white, with corners, cornices and frames in granite. The principal facade is slightly extended and elevated by several steps to wooden entrance and exit doorways and their divisions, with lateral facades marked by single doors. The interior is occupied by access platform to the trams. The upper stop included lateral platforms of cobbled slope, with access to the rail line by a double staircase in granite, diverging at the top.


References


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* * * {{authority control Braga Railway lines opened in 1882 Water-powered funicular railways Funicular railways in Portugal Standard gauge railways in Portugal Properties of Public Interest in Portugal