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56-726: The Bridgnorth Cliff Railway , also known as the Bridgnorth Funicular Railway or Castle Hill Railway , is a funicular railway in the town of Bridgnorth in the English county of Shropshire . The line links the Low Town of Bridgnorth, adjacent to the River Severn , with the High Town, adjacent to the ruins of Bridgnorth Castle . The line is one of four funicular railways in the UK built to

112-418: A drive bullwheel – which then controls the movement of the haul rope using friction. Some early funiculars were powered in the same way, but using steam engines or other types of motor. The bullwheel has two grooves: after the first half turn around it the cable returns via an auxiliary pulley. This arrangement has the advantage of having twice the contact area between the cable and the groove, and returning

168-447: A maximum of 11.5 long tons (11.7 tonnes ), overcame that of the lower car. When the car reached the bottom station the tank was emptied and pumped up to a 30,000-imperial-gallon (140,000 L; 36,000 US gal) tank on the top of the upper station. Between 1943 and 1944 the system was rebuilt to use electricity, with an official re-opening on 9 May 1944 by Mayor T.C. Pembro – who had taken office only 2 hours previously. In 1955

224-406: A second cable – bottom towrope – which runs through a pulley at the bottom of the incline. In these designs, one of the pulleys must be designed as a tensioning wheel to avoid slack in the ropes. One advantage of such an installation is the fact that the weight of the rope is balanced between the carriages; therefore, the engine no longer needs to use any power to lift the cable itself. This practice

280-564: A sewage plant at the upper part of the city. Some funiculars of this type were later converted to electrical power. For example, the Giessbachbahn in the Swiss canton of Bern , opened in 1879, was originally powered by water ballast. In 1912 its energy provision was replaced by a hydraulic engine powered by a Pelton turbine . In 1948 this in turn was replaced by an electric motor. There are three main rail layouts used on funiculars; depending on

336-425: A short distance down from the passing loop as well, for the sole purpose of allowing the other car to call at Nebozízek. A number of cable railway systems which pull their cars on inclined slopes were built since the 1820s. In the second half of the 19th century the design of a funicular as a transit system emerged. It was especially attractive in comparison with the other systems of the time as counterbalancing of

392-440: A system of pulleys at the upper end of the line. If the railway track is not perfectly straight, the cable is guided along the track using sheaves – unpowered pulleys that simply allow the cable to change direction. While one car is pulled upwards by one end of the haul rope, the other car descends the slope at the other end. Since the weight of the two cars is counterbalanced (except for the weight of passengers), no lifting force

448-528: A tunnel 1.8 km (1.1 mi) long, is claimed by the Guinness World Records as the "least extensive metro " in the world. Technically, it is an underground funicular. The Dresden Suspension Railway ( Dresden Schwebebahn ), which hangs from an elevated rail, is the only suspended funicular in the world. The Fribourg funicular is the only funicular in the world powered by wastewater. Standseilbahn Linth-Limmern , capable of moving 215 t,

504-554: A two-rail layout (with a single conduit shared by both cars). Another example is the Peak Tram in Hong Kong , which is mostly of a two-rail layout except for a short three-rail section immediately uphill of the passing loop. Some four-rail funiculars have their tracks interlaced above and below the passing loop; this allows the system to be nearly as narrow as a two-rail system, with a single platform at each station, while also eliminating

560-413: 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 ends of a haulage cable, which is looped over a pulley at the upper end of the track. The result of such a configuration is that the two carriages move synchronously: as one ascends,

616-409: Is owned and operated by a private company, The Bridgnorth Castle Hill Railway Company Limited , which was incorporated on 5 October 1891. The current owners, who acquired the company and cliff railway in 2011, are direct descendants of George Croydon Marks' third cousin, all being descended from one Nicholas Jonas (later Jones) of Tawstock near Barnstaple , north Devon. Other descendants of Jonas were

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672-453: Is particularly fine: most of the persons commemorated are members of the family of the Earls, connections of theirs, or household officers. Features of interest include the 16th century gallery, the manorial pew of the Earls of Bath (Renaissance in style) and two ceilings of Italian plasterwork. The tomb of Lady Fitzwarren and the monument of Rachel, Countess of Bath (with figure by Burman) are in

728-426: Is required to move them; the engine only has to lift the cable itself and the excess passengers, and supply the energy lost to friction by the cars' wheels and the pulleys. For passenger comfort, funicular carriages are often (although not always) constructed so that the floor of the passenger deck is horizontal, and not necessarily parallel to the sloped track. In some installations, the cars are also attached to

784-455: Is said to have the highest capacity. Some inclined elevators are incorrectly called funiculars. On an inclined elevator the cars operate independently rather than in interconnected pairs, and are lifted uphill. A notable example is Paris ' Montmartre Funicular . Its formal title is a relic of its original configuration, when its two cars operated as a counterbalanced, interconnected pair, always moving in opposite directions, thus meeting

840-498: Is situated in Tawstock Church. Sir Henry Northcote's elder brother was Sir Francis Northcote, 3rd Baronet (died 1709), of Hayne in the parish of Newton St Cyres , Devon, who was the husband of Anne Wrey, a daughter of Sir Chichester Wrey, 3rd Baronet (1628–1668), who had married Lady Anne Bourchier, one of the three daughters and co-heiresses of Edward Bourchier, 4th Earl of Bath (1590–1636), and heiress of Tawstock. In 1790 Corffe

896-462: Is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Barnstaple , Bishop's Tawton , Atherington , Yarnscombe , Horwood, Lovacott and Newton Tracey and Fremington . In 2001 it had a population of 2,093. The estimated population in June 2019 was 2,372. A Grade I listed building, St Peter's church is, unusually for Devon, a church largely of the 14th century. A church existed on this location circa

952-950: Is the Fisherman's Walk Cliff Railway in Bournemouth , England, which is 39 metres (128 ft) long. Stoosbahn in Switzerland, with a maximum slope of 110% (47.7°), is the steepest funicular in the world. The Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway , built in 1888, is the steepest and longest water-powered funicular in the world. It climbs 152 metres (499 ft) vertically on a 58% gradient. The city of Valparaíso in Chile used to have up to 30 funicular elevators ( Spanish : ascensores ). The oldest of them dates from 1883. 15 remain with almost half in operation, and others in various stages of restoration. The Carmelit in Haifa , Israel, with six stations and

1008-474: Is used on funiculars with slopes below 6%, funiculars using sledges instead of carriages, or any other case where it is not ensured that the descending car is always able to pull out the cable from the pulley in the station on the top of the incline. It is also used in systems where the engine room is located at the lower end of the track (such as the upper half of the Great Orme Tramway ) – in such systems,

1064-505: The Tünel has been in continuous operation since 1875 and is both the first underground funicular and the second-oldest underground railway. It remained powered by a steam engine up until it was taken for renovation in 1968. Until the end of the 1870s, the four-rail parallel-track funicular was the normal configuration. Carl Roman Abt developed the Abt Switch allowing the two-rail layout, which

1120-551: The passing loop ) and the Carmelit in Haifa , Israel (six stations, three on each side of the passing loop). A few funiculars with asymmetrically placed stations also exist. For example, the Petřín funicular in Prague has three stations: one at each end, and a third (Nebozízek) a short way up from the passing loop. Because of this arrangement, carriages are forced to make a technical stop

1176-447: The 12th century, but was extensively modified and enlarged. According to the listing summary, "the crossing tower, north and south transepts and aisles were added" in the 14th century; additional modifications were made in the next two centuries before a restoration in 1867-1868. The plan is cruciform and the site is in the former park of the Earls of Bath . The collection of church monuments

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1232-619: The 200 steps between High Town and Low Town, a proposal to build a Patent Cliff Railway was put to the town council . Engineered by George Croydon Marks , plans were accepted for funicular railway on the current route. The Bridgnorth Castle Hill Railway Company Ltd was registered in 1891, and construction started on 2 November 1891. The company, which still operates the railway today, was founded by Sir George Croydon Marks (later Lord Marks of Woolwich), who became its first managing director from 1891 until 1901. His brother, Edward Marks, became its second managing director from 1901 until 1924. George

1288-781: The Manor and subsequently expanded. The Historic England summary simply indicates that it probably originated in the late 18th century. An article in Country Life magazine referred to the structure as a "baby Windsor Castle". The estate of Corffe belonged formerly to the Hearle family, and came to the Lovett family by the marriage of Edward Lovett (1627–1702), whose mural monument survives in Tawstock Church (a son of Sir Robert Lovett (1577–1643) of Liscombe House, Soulbury , Buckinghamshire, Sheriff of Buckinghamshire in 1610) with Joan Hearle (1642–1709),

1344-455: The answer to a question in the long-running BBC television quiz Mastermind . In the general knowledge round contestants were asked which Shropshire town on the River Severn had a funicular railway connecting its High Town with its Low Town. Funicular A funicular ( / f juː ˈ n ɪ k j ʊ l ər , f ( j ) ʊ -, f ( j ) ə -/ few- NIK -yoo-lər, f(y)uu-, f(j)ə- )

1400-450: The brothers Tom and Bob Jones, who founded Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway , which was also engineered by the Marks brothers. On 1 August 2015, Sir Robert McAlpine unveiled a Transport Trust Red Wheel plaque at the cliff railway's top station commemorating Sir George Croydon Marks. A director of Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway, and one of his sons, being distant cousins of both Marks and

1456-414: The cable that runs through the top of the incline is still necessary to prevent the carriages from coasting down the incline. In most modern funiculars, neither of the two carriages is equipped with an engine of its own. Instead, the propulsion is provided by an electric motor in the engine room (typically at the upper end of the track); the motor is linked via a speed-reducing gearbox to a large pulley –

1512-464: The carriage's wheels during trailing movements (i.e. away from the passing loop); this procedure also sets the route for the next trip in the opposite direction. The Great Orme Tramway is an example of a funicular that utilizes this system. Another turnout system, known as the Abt switch, involves no moving parts on the track at all. Instead, the carriages are built with an unconventional wheelset design:

1568-553: The cars are also equipped with spring-applied, hydraulically opened rail brakes. The first funicular caliper brakes which clamp each side of the crown of the rail were invented by the Swiss entrepreneurs Franz Josef Bucher and Josef Durrer and implemented at the Stanserhorn funicular  [ de ] , opened in 1893. The Abt rack and pinion system was also used on some funiculars for speed control or emergency braking. Many early funiculars were built using water tanks under

1624-484: The cars exchanging roles. The movement is controlled by a brakeman using the brake handle of the rack and pinion system engaged with the rack mounted between the rails. The Bom Jesus funicular built in 1882 near Braga , Portugal is one of the extant systems of this type. Another example, the Fribourg funicular in Fribourg , Switzerland built in 1899, is of particular interest as it utilizes waste water, coming from

1680-579: The cars was deemed to be a cost-cutting solution. The first line of the Funiculars of Lyon ( Funiculaires de Lyon ) opened in 1862, followed by other lines in 1878, 1891 and 1900. The Budapest Castle Hill Funicular was built in 1868–69, with the first test run on 23 October 1869. The oldest funicular railway operating in Britain dates from 1875 and is in Scarborough , North Yorkshire. In Istanbul , Turkey,

1736-435: The cliff railway's inauguration, the company published the fourth edition of George Croydon Marks' booklet "Bridgnorth and Its Castle Hill Railway" which had first appeared on the inaugural day. The fourth edition was a facsimile of the first, but with the foreword page having been written by a current director of the company, being the granddaughter of Marks' third cousin. On 5 October 2018, Bridgnorth Cliff Railway featured as

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1792-468: The current Bridgnorth directors, were present. Also present for the unveiling were Edward Marks' grandson and other descendants. On 10 January 2013, the Bridgnorth Cliff Railway was featured in an episode of the fourth series of Great British Railway Journeys ; when presenter Michael Portillo interviewed the company's secretary. In June 2017, three weeks before the 125th anniversary of

1848-540: The definition of a funicular. However, the system has since been redesigned, and now uses two independently-operating cars that can each ascend or descend on demand, qualifying as a double inclined elevator; the term "funicular" in its title is retained as a historical reference. Tawstock Tawstock is a village, civil parish and former manor in North Devon in the English county of Devon , England. The parish

1904-576: The distinction of being the first funicular in the United States for strictly passenger use and not freight. In 1880 the funicular of Mount Vesuvius inspired the Italian popular song Funiculì, Funiculà . This funicular was destroyed repeatedly by volcanic eruptions and abandoned after the eruption of 1944. According to the Guinness World Records , the smallest public funicular in the world

1960-422: The downward-moving cable in the same plane as the upward-moving one. Modern installations also use high friction liners to enhance the friction between the bullwheel grooves and the cable. For emergency and service purposes two sets of brakes are used at the engine room: the emergency brake directly grips the bullwheel, and the service brake is mounted at the high speed shaft of the gear. In case of an emergency

2016-511: The families of de Totnes, de Braose, de Tracy, FitzMartin, Audley, FitzWarin, Hankford, Bourchier and Wrey. The present Wrey baronet still lives within the former manor and retains ownership of much of the land within the parish, but no longer owns Tawstock Court, the manor house . All that remains of the Elizabethan mansion re-built by William Bourchier, 3rd Earl of Bath is the gatehouse, with date-stone 1574. The house burned down in 1787 and

2072-405: The floor of each car, which were filled or emptied until just sufficient imbalance was achieved to allow movement, and a few such funiculars still exist and operate in the same way. The car at the top of the hill is loaded with water until it is heavier than the car at the bottom, causing it to descend the hill and pull up the other car. The water is drained at the bottom, and the process repeats with

2128-464: The heiress of Corffe. The Lovett family is very ancient and William Lovett is said to have been "Wolf Hunter" ( Louvetier ) to William the Conqueror , hence the family's arms of Argent, three wolves passant in pale sable , which can be seen on various mural monuments in Tawstock Church. The family retained its ancient seat of Liscombe until 1907. Edward Lovett's sister Anne Lovett (born 1615/19) became

2184-497: The need for the costly junctions either side of the passing loop. The Hill Train at the Legoland Windsor Resort is an example of this configuration. In the case of two-rail funiculars, various solutions exist for ensuring that a carriage always enters the same track at the passing loop. One such solution involves installing switches at each end of the passing loop. These switches are moved into their desired position by

2240-400: The original heavy wooden cars were replaced by the 'up-to-date' stronger and lighter (5.4 long tons or 5.5 tonnes) aluminium monocoque ones still in use today. Each car can carry up to 18 passengers. The rails were replaced in about 1972 with the bullhead design formerly used on mainline railways . In December 2022 the railway was closed amid safety concerns over a serious crack in

2296-595: The other car has them on the right-hand side, meaning it follows the rightmost rail and runs on the right branch of the loop. This system was invented by Carl Roman Abt and first implemented on the Lugano Città–Stazione funicular in Switzerland in 1886; since then, the Abt turnout has gained popularity, becoming a standard for modern funiculars. The lack of moving parts on the track makes this system cost-effective and reliable compared to other systems. The majority of funiculars have two stations, one at each end of

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2352-463: The other descends at an equal speed. This feature distinguishes funiculars from inclined elevators , which have a single car that is hauled uphill. The term funicular derives from the Latin word funiculus , the diminutive of funis , meaning 'rope'. In a funicular, both cars are permanently connected to the opposite ends of the same cable, known as a haul rope ; this haul rope runs through

2408-406: The outboard wheels have flanges on both sides, whereas the inboard wheels are unflanged (and usually wider to allow them to roll over the turnouts more easily). The double-flanged wheels keep the carriages bound to one specific rail at all times. One car has the flanged wheels on the left-hand side, so it follows the leftmost rail, forcing it to run via the left branch of the passing loop; similarly,

2464-403: The railway operated 362 days a year (closing on Christmas Day , Boxing Day and New Year's Day ). Each journey takes about one and a quarter minutes, and on an average day approximately 200 trips were made. As of April 2024 return tickets cost £2.00 with discounts available for groups of 15 or more. Single tickets are not available. The line has the following technical parameters: The railway

2520-465: The retaining wall, causing 14 of the 16 drivers and engineers employed to be made redundant. Work to repair the crack was due to commence on 27 March 2023, raising hopes for the staff to be re-employed when work finished. However this optimism proved premature as more work was identified as being needed. This finally commenced in September 2023 and the railway reopened on 4 March 2024. Prior to its closure,

2576-733: The same basic design (the others were the Clifton Rocks Railway in Bristol ; the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway in Devon ; and the Constitution Hill Railway in Aberystwyth , Wales ). With a maximum gradient of 64% it is one of the steepest railways in the country. Following a public meeting in 1890 to discuss an alternative method of communication between the two parts of Bridgnorth to

2632-410: The second wife of Edward Bourchier, 4th Earl of Bath (1590–1636), of Tawstock Court, but the marriage was without children. She married secondly (as his second wife) to Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden (1611–1682). Sir Henry Northcote, 4th Baronet (1655–1730), a physician, married Penelope Lovett, daughter and heiress of Edward Lovett. He lived at Corffe, and died there in 1730. His mural monument

2688-522: The south chancel aisle. The tomb of Sir John Wrey (died 1597) is a large slate-covered tomb-chest with decorated slate back-plate. The tomb was originally at St Ive in Cornwall because a Wray had married a Bourchier in 1652 and it was brought here in 1924. The manor of Tawstock was an important one in North Devon, being at times a residence of the feudal barons of Barnstaple . It was held successively by

2744-580: The space required for building a funicular, reducing grading costs on mountain slopes and property costs for urban funiculars. These layouts enabled a funicular boom in the latter half of the 19th century. Currently, the United States' oldest and steepest funicular in continuous use is the Monongahela Incline located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania . Construction began in 1869 and officially opened 28 May 1870 for passenger use. The Monongahela incline also has

2800-432: The stable blocks to the immediate west of the house. A building described as "a folly, built in form of look-out tower" located near the Manor was dubbed "The Tower" in its 1965 Grade II listing report (Entry Number 1253651). The structure was restored and converted into a home that was listed for sale in 2019/2020 as "Tawstock Castle". Some reports states that the tower was thought to have been built by Sir Bourchier Wrey of

2856-412: The system, the track bed can consist of four, three, or two rails. Some funicular systems use a mix of different track layouts. An example of this arrangement is the lower half of the Great Orme Tramway , where the section "above" the passing loop has a three-rail layout (with each pair of adjacent rails having its own conduit which the cable runs through), while the section "below" the passing loop has

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2912-519: The track. However, some systems have been built with additional intermediate stations . Because of the nature of a funicular system, intermediate stations are usually built symmetrically about the mid-point; this allows both cars to call simultaneously at a station. Examples of funiculars with more than two stations include the Wellington Cable Car in New Zealand (five stations, including one at

2968-421: Was already chairman of Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway and went on to collaborate with Marks on other funicular projects. Newnes, who had previously founded Tit-bits and The Strand Magazine , went on to publish Country Life . Originally the line was a Water balance railway . Water was pumped into a 2,000-imperial-gallon (9,100 L; 2,400 US gal) tank beneath the top car until its weight,

3024-469: Was also the founder of the patent attorneys Marks & Clerk, who continue to trade. The railway was opened on 7 July 1892 by Mayor John Anderson, with a public holiday being proclaimed to celebrate the occasion. Most of the original funding came from George Croydon Marks' business partner, Sir George Newnes, MP , a wealthy publisher, who purchased eighty-five per cent of the share capital in Bridgnorth Cliff Railway and who became its first chairman. Newnes

3080-536: Was rebuilt in the Neo-Gothic style by about 1800. In about 1940 Rev. Sir Albany Bourchier Sherard Wrey, 13th Baronet, let Tawstock Court to St Michael's Preparatory School. The 14th Baronet sold it to the school which continued to occupy it until it went into administration in 2012. Later that year it was bought by a property investor and developer, as a private residence. As part of the sale the nursery school division of St Michael's School continued to operate as of 2013 in

3136-728: Was used for the first time in 1879 when the Giessbach Funicular opened in Switzerland . In the United States, the first funicular to use a two-rail layout was the Telegraph Hill Railroad in San Francisco, which was in operation from 1884 until 1886. The Mount Lowe Railway in Altadena, California, was the first mountain railway in the United States to use the three-rail layout. Three- and two-rail layouts considerably reduced

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