Funicular Railways – David Hanger

The talk was billed as Funicular Railways but in reality covered a variety of cable railways, including inclined planes both in industry and on early railways such as the Stockton and Darlington and Canterbury and Whitstable railways. It covered an eclectic selection of traditional funicular railways or cliff lifts, around the coast of the UK, and one or two others like Bridgnorth, plus a number of overseas locations that the speaker had been to. It would have been better however if he had covered fewer systems but in greater depth, both in terms of their own history and the relevant technology. This year is not actually a bad year to cover funiculars as it is the 150th anniversary of the first cliff lift in Britain, that at the South Cliff in Scarborough, which opened in 1875. On the general cable haulage side, the recent people mover at Luton Airport is cable hauled showing there is still a place for cable haulage. Funiculars providing transport either for sightseeing or to connect high and low places are also still being developed.

The speaker finished off with a quick tour around British seaside and riverine piers, some of which had associated railway

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