Funicular car

A funicular (/fəˈnɪkjʊlər/), also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a type of cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a steep slope, the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalancing each other. Funiculars of one type or another have existed for hundreds of years, and they continue to be used for moving both passengers and goods. The name “funicular” itself is derived from the Latin word funiculus, the diminutive of funis, which translates as “rope.”

The oldest funicular is the Reisszug, a private line providing goods access to Hohensalzburg Castle at Salzburg in Austria. It was first documented in 1515 by Cardinal Matthäus Lang, who became Archbishop of Salzburg. The line originally used wooden rails and a hemp haulage rope and was operated by human or animal power. Today, steel rails, steel cables and an electric motor have taken over, but the line still follows the same route through the castle's fortifications. This also makes it the oldest operational railway of any type in the world.

The first railway in England with wooden rails was probably made for James Clifford, lord of the manor of Broseley. He was working coal mines there by 1575 and had a wagonway delivering coal to barges on the River Severn by 1606. This is after the first record of a railway in England, the Wollaton Wagonway, but seems to be earlier.

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