Central Funicular
Encyclopedia
|}

The Central Funicular (Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...

: Funicolare Centrale), is a funicular
Funicular
A funicular, also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a 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 counterbalance each other.-Operation:The basic principle of funicular...

 railway line that forms part of the Metropolitana di Napoli
Metropolitana di Napoli
Metropolitana di Napoli is the metro system serving the city of Naples, Italy. The system includes three underground rapid transit lines and commuter railways , with planned upgrading and expansion work underway...

 (Naples Metro), which is the main part of the metro system for the city of Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

, Italy. Opened in 1928, the Central Funicular of Naples is one of the most used funicular railways in the world, and carries over 10 million passengers per year.

Central Funicular connects four stations, Piazza Fuga, Petraio-Via Palizzi, Corso Vittorio Emanuele (Napoli), and Augusteo at Piazzetta Duca d'Aosta. At Piazza Fuga, the Central Funicular station is adjacent to Piazza Vanvitelli, where there is a connection to both Vanvitelli station (Stazione Vanvitelli), on Line 1, and the Chiaia Funicular.

History

In the first two decades of the 20th century a dramatic increase in the number of people travelling downhill from Vanvitelli
Vanvitelli
Both father and son are often tagged with the name Vanvitelli:* Caspar van Wittel, painter of Baroque vedute* Luigi Vanvitelli, his son, noted Rococo architect of Rome and Naples...

 to Central Naples led to a need to provide a public transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...

 option for the steep decline. A route between via Toledo and Piazza Fuga (adjacent to Piazza Vanvitelli) was settled on, with intermediate stops at Corso Vittorio Emanuele (near Cariati) and Petraio. Due to the difficult nature of the steep slope, it was decided early on that a funicular line would provide the best option for the route.

The route the line would follow was surveyed and constructed by a company known as SAFUCE, the electronic and mechanical aspects were completed by the company Ceretti & Tanfani, and the cars by O.F.M. An innovative traction facility was installed utilising twin Ward Leonard groups with dynamic repulsion batteries, and the cars driven by 300 hp Marelli engines. The entire system was connected to a buffer battery, ensuring continuous service for over an hour if the power failed, allowing all cars to descend prior to cut off of power supply.

Construction took just over two years, and the Central Funicular was opened to much fanfare on 28 October 1928. The line proved immediately popular, providing great relief from the gruelling climb up the steep slope. The line operated continuously (including during World War II) until 1976, when control was transferred from SAFUCE to ATAN. ATAN decided that the line desperately required modernisation work, which finally began in 1989.

By 1990, the line was being regularly closed to allow work to be undertaken. A tender was put out to refit both the lines and cars, and this was undertaken by Ceretti & Tanfani, who sub-contracted various aspects of their project to firms including Fondedile, Raiole, Del Vecchio, and Icla. After a reasonably trouble free project, with few delays, the whole renovation project was completed, and re-opened on 27 October 1991, one day short of the line's 63rd anniversary. Further electronic and mechanical works were carried out in 1994 by Sigla di Forli, who sub-contracted Leitner S.p.A and E.E.I. (Equipaggiamenti Elettronici Industriali) for operational controls, and I.E.G fitted new 300 kW -540 V engines. The second project was completed and re-opening of the line occurred on 25 April (Liberation Day), 1996.

In 2001, responsibility for operation of the line was transferred from Azienda Napoletana Mobilità (ANM)
ANM (Naples)
Azienda Napoletana Mobilità SpA , more commonly known simply as ANM, is a municipally controlled public company that is the primary provider of surface public transportation in the city of Naples, Italy, and also provides a portion of the surface transit service in surrounding municipalities...

 (ATAN's successor in 1995) to Metronapoli
Metronapoli
Metronapoli SpA is an Italian company responsible for the provision of public transport in the city of Naples, and its primary function is the operation and maintenance of the Naples Metro system. It was founded on 26 July 2000 and became operational on 1 February 2001...

.

Operation

The Central Funicular is one of the longest funicular lines in the world, and with over 10 million passengers carried annually, has the largest capacity. It carries an average of 28,000 passengers on workdays, but this is reduced to an average of 10,000 on weekends and holidays.

From the top to bottom the line is 1270 metres long, but descends 170 metres in altitude, at an average gradient of 13%. The carriages travel at an average speed of 7 metres per second, and the entire route takes four minutes, and twenty seconds. Each train can carry 420 passengers at a time, giving a total capacity of 6,200 passengers per hour in each direction.

Stations

  • Piazza Fuga Station
  • Petraio-Via Palizzi Station
  • Corso Vittorio Emanuele Station
  • Augusteo Station

See also


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK