The World’s STEEPEST Railway!: Stoosbahn

[@gunadz]

The trains remind me of a supersized, modern version of the elevators in the Gateway Arch.

[@RMTransit]

Yes! They are similar!

[@Foxy_AR]

Finally, a futuristic looking rapid transit line that doesn’t suck!

[@vaseklepic12]

Furniculars are not a rapit transit by any means. You are limited to 1 vehicle per direction which greatly reduces frequency. They are cool tho, I sometimes take a furnicular to school just because I can (it's slower than alternatives and only slightly faster than walking, if it is faster at all).

[@RMTransit]

@@vaseklepic12 Ah, I'd still call them rapid transit. They are just niche but, you're climbing rapidly! The frequency isn't high but its also not so low that it shouldn't qualify IMO.

[@Ginkoman2]

​@@RMTransit it probably still has more throughput than a road would have. imagine all the chaos in the Hairpin turns up the mountains. especially with traffic up and down. As the hairpins would be many and also very sharp because of the incline

[@dgu8240]

​@@vaseklepic12 I disagree. I use 2 different funicular on a nearly daily basis. One on my morning transit into the city, another during lunch hours when I go eat at a friends house and then again the first one in the evening when I go home. A cart in each direction every 2 - 4 minutes and way faster than the tram that has to wind up the hillside with like 5 more stops. Also similar with the second one, there is a bus going to each station but the bus takes much longer between each stops because it has to do a route around 10 times the length but this time there are no extra stops and it is still way worse and much less frequent as this funicular has service every 6 minutes or earlier as it is complete automated and starts as soon as it is full.

[@vaseklepic12]

@@Ginkoman2 the road with a bus route has significantly higher troughput

[@bearcubdaycare]

The reason for the gondolas in the shots of Rio is space in favelas, without tearing down large numbers of homes (which they'd have to do even for buses, let alone surface train lines...even the stations for a metro would require demolition). The mayor of Rio braved backlash for demolition in favelas to build schools and parks, but wanted to limit how much he tore down, because of the impact on the people affected. (But also, transit, schools and parks are an impact on the residents of the favelas, a positive impact, so it was a balance.) He gave a lot of interviews about his reasoning.

[@SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

Although Istanbul's Tünel opened in 1875, Lyon beat them to the punch when their first funicular line opened in 1862. However it sadly closed in 1968 when it was converted to a road tunnel. This first funicular line opened more than a century before Lyon Metro which opened in 1974, and even converted a former funicular line into a metro line, the second funicular line which opened in 1891 and became the Metro's Line C in 1978. Lyon got three more funicular lines with the third opening in 1891 and two more in 1900. The third line became a rack railway in 1901 before it became a funicular again in 1958, the fourth line closed in 1937, but the fifth was modernized in 1970 and is still standing. So Lyon has two funicular lines currently in service, and were modernized again in 1986 and 1987, and refurbished in 2018 and 2019. The Fourvière funicular got a new station at Saint-Jean in 1991 as well to better serve the two funicular lines, new Metro line, and Vieux-Lyon

[@gearandalthefirst7027]

"So, does your city need a funicular?" *looks outside to the entirely flat plain my town was built on*

[@recursivefunction3965]

Love this one, reminds me of a gyro-train from the 50s

[@RMTransit]

I love how it simultaneously feels cutting edge and retro! Thats a special combo!

[@enrique5167]

I hope yo do a Brienz Rothorn Bahn video in the future, I'll love to see your approach on to that particular line :)

[@RMTransit]

Perhaps a video is due in the future 😂, idk about covering a line that still uses steam though

[@markusstudeli2997]

Unlike this funicular, which actually serves the local village as means of transport, the Brienzer Rothorn Bahn is purely a tourist attraction, much like the Jungfraujoch Bahn or the Gornergrat Bahn. So while the Stoosbahn somehow still qualifies as transit in a broader sense, the Brienzer Rothorn Bahn does not.

[@enrique5167]

@@markusstudeli2997 I know, but it would be nice anyway. Maybe @RMTransit could do a series about tourist's transit, with shorter and simpler videos, just for fun and geeking around 😊

[@AmusementLabs]

The St. Louis Arch also uses something like this if I remember correct. If anything is a perfect use case it's a near vertical railway.

[@muzclark]

I use to work at Scenic World and drove the Scenic Railway. The videos you showed of the railway are the old version which did have a counterweight, the new train does not and is now fully enclosed. I agree the scenic railway is technically a lift but for obvious marketing reasons that fact is ignored.

[@robertheinrich2994]

what is your opinion about the trieste - opicina tramway / funicular? I don't know of any other hybrid system that can switch modes in this way.

[@adrianthoroughgood1191]

With everyone talking about funiculars I was thinking of Trieste! That one is very special! Tram with funicular assist! It's a shame they still haven't got it up and running again after the accident in 2016. It was supposed to be back up years ago but got delayed by covid. Don't know what the excuse now is.

[@robertheinrich2994]

@@adrianthoroughgood1191 I rode that thing in 1999 or so, was part of a school trip down to slovenia and italy. was quite a lot of fun 🙂 oh, and yesterday, I went on a trip to ride the pöstlingbergbahn in linz. quite an interesting ride too 🙂

[@reekelm9526]

5:35 Lyon's "Ficelle" (funicular of the Rue Terme) is another example of very old underground urban railway that are actually funiculars, its dates back to 1862.

[@5omeone1]

5:27 the Carmelit in Haifa is also an underground funicular that serves as rapid transit

[@alainterieur4837]

3:03 There is also a funicular that rotates in the city of Neuchâtel! The station at the bottom is completely flat, while the one at the top, which is located at the train station, is curved. It was built in 2001 for the national exposition that took place that year (it was a pretty big deal for the country). It's a pretty interesting funicular! It even has some artwork in the tunnel, which is changed every few years

[@jack2453]

I have to visit!! Also the Perugia minimetró is worth a look....

[@awesomealbertt1150]

I was in Zurich last year, and when I came back to Yorkshire I found out about the wonderful funiculars and strange railways (of which I got to ride on 0 of) and was extremely frustrated as a rail enthusiast.

[@QImpact]

Having level platforms is a great improvement for funiculars.

[@vintageradio3404]

The Scenic Railway at Katoomba, NSW is the world's steepest railway and no amount of political correctness can change that. Why? Because it is a five car train that runs on railway tracks. Additionally, its grade changes at least three times on the route, not counting the stops at each end of the run. The facility is also one of the oldest steep railways because it was originally a tramway for coal mining which was once prevalent in the Blue Mountains. The steepest portion of the route is 52° yet has an excellent safety record for the entire time it has been in revenue-earning service.

[@MelkorRex]

Pittsburgh has had 17 funiculars, or "Inclines" over the years. The remaining two are the Monongahela Incline (1870) and the Dusquesne Incline (1877). They're part of the city's transit system and many people rely on them as part of their daily commute. A section of the Mon Incline track passes over P. J. McArdle Roadway. If you can take your eyes off the city, you can look up and see passing incline cars sometimes.

[@harrisonwinton1562]

The rack railway on mount pilatus is another contender, and it seems unfair to discount the Australian scenic railway since there is definitely more nuance to its history than just calling it a lift or roller coaster..

[@Lucius_Chiaraviglio]

Another advantage of funiculars, slant elevators, and cog railways is that they can carry more cargo for a given heft of cable. The cable that a gondola rides on has to be able to hold the whole weight of the gondola without sagging too much, whereas the cable on a funicular or slant elevator just has to be able to hold the slope-reduced weight of the vehicle without snapping, and if it does snap, you at least have the possibility (depending upon particular design) of a secondary braking system stopping the vehicle (good luck trying to get that to work on a gondola); cog railway racks could be made even tougher.

[@LeonardoFSI]

Here is what good innovation, that actually solves existing problem looks like, as compared to “innovation” that reinvents the wheel solving problems that do not exist in the first place (gadgetbahns)

[@Tai-Xian]

Can you do an explainer for KL? Why is everything elevated? Is it to do with the rain?

[@agentzapdos4960]

Build a bunch of these in Hamilton, Ontario. They used to have gondolas and streetcars, but they decided to tear it all up to make room for cars.

[@myolleckyou]

Do you know about the Carmelit in Haifa?

[@jjperceval]

scenic world rollercoaster (the orphan rocker) was completed, just never opened. its also been removed.

[@nicholasbyrne6485]

Any chance of a video about Brisbanes Train network? Formerly known as CityTrain. Queensland Rail.

[@OnkelJajusBahn]

The Stoosbahn wasn't the first funicular who aligns the floor gradient. For excample the funicular in Innsbruck in Austria also does the same. But with a slightly different technology.

[@nperkinsuoguelph]

The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Mo has 'tilting' passenger cabins and was completed in 1963-64.

[@thapanamnet9]

All this talk of gondolas vs funiculars reminds me of Hong Kong's Ocean Park. Which uses both cause why not.

[@jean-louiswillems7517]

As an inhabitant of Stoos, I can confirm I it is spectacular. One correction: it is not a loop, each cabin stay always on the same side when crossing.

[@adrianthoroughgood1191]

I think he meant the cable is a loop, rather than the line is a loop?

[@Dan-Athema]

There is a (much shorter) funicular in Porto that both goes into a tunnel and has a variable slope that uses an air bag to adjust the angle of the carriage.

[@CastresoneAk1]

my city Napoli has multiple part-underground funicular (3) also had the first one in italy the 1880 Vesuvius funicular

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

6:15 Most countries' property rights extend down under the house (some) to the centre of the earth and up above the roof to the Heavens. Thus there isn't as good a saving as implied.

[@maxhenn9549]

One of the most unique Cablecars/Funiculars is the "Tunnelbahn Fleißalm" in Heiligenblut in Carinthia in Austria. It's like a Gondola but in a Tunnel and it hangs from a Rail on top of the Tunnel. Most of the trail is in the tunnel. That makes it realy unique. Maybe you should make a Video about that Cablecar too.

[@nader50752]

Another banger 😤🌞

[@Foxy_AR]

Why that emoji then?

[@nader50752]

@@Foxy_AR I meant it in a positive way 🙏🏼

[@RMTransit]

Thanks!

[@MikeDS49]

The funicular in Hong Kong has a simple solution. It's hard to explain without a picture, but the car starts flat at the and it has (had?) a periodically curved aisle floors covered in grip tape. You keep yourself level by adjusting where on the curve you stand once the grade increases. The seats were fixed and felt like a recliner as you climbed the grade.

[@DarthLenaPlant]

The steepest (or at least one of the steepest) adhesion railway is the Pöstlingbergbahn in Linz. Since it has truly independent cars it'd say it's a ~real~ railway. But then again, it is more or less a tramway for a very steep hill. (It's absolutely worth the visit tho)

[@magnemoe1]

Funiculars and other trains has two safety benefits over cable cars. They are mostly easy to evacuate if they get stuck. And cable snapping will get you stuck assuming it has some speed break like an elevator.

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

Gondolas have redundant cables, and funiculars have redundant speed brakes.

[@100dampf]

​@@OntarioTrafficManmany do, but it is still easy to snap both of the load bearing cables, with a plane for an example. It's harder to destroy the tracks, so it couldn't break. And there are plenty of detachable gondolas that only use one cable

[@IamTheHolypumpkin]

The small city (or in my opinion village) has a funicular 😊. I use it every time I want to buy groceries or travel to my parents place. It’s essential to me and while the novelty by now has worn off I still kinda love this little thing. It’s just such a unique form of public Transit and with a 15 minute frequency by far the most frequent mode of transport out here. On the mountain (honestly is more of a hill) I live there’s a bus a day. Down it is usually hourly.

[@aphextwin5712]

I am continue to be slightly amused when North Americans call everything consisting of more than a handful of houses a ‘town’ when most Europeans would call it a village. This American language usage has had impacted me enough that I would call a 300 people North American municipality a town but a similarly-sized European municipality a village (and this works the same in a range of languages).

[@jramseier]

You didnt mention the biggest advantage imo, the stoos bahn gets you to the top in like 4 minutes. A gondola is usually slower

[@Gfynbcyiokbg8710]

Not really. The stoosbahn does 10m/s a 3s gondola does 8.5m/s and an aerial tramway can do up to 12m/s

[@PiotrPavel]

I wondering why nt Rack Rail with rotating cabins? and how long can be the route (becouse of cable?)

[@Gfynbcyiokbg8710]

Why would you use rack rail? You've now got to build bigger and heavier trains to fit the engines and therefore stronger track, just to have a less efficient system

[@annoyed707]

This uplifting video about funiculars did not let me down.

[@MurcuryEntertainment]

I'm sure you're already aware of them, but if you aren't please look into the private Funicular elevators in wellington New-Zealand.

[@adambuesser6264]

How different is it from a cog railway?

[@100dampf]

Very, a cog railway is self-propelled unlike a funicular. A cog railway is more a conventional train, that simply uses a ladder. While it has many advantages, like more flexible tracks and length, it only goes up to 250‰ in most cases. With more specialised trains, like the Locher System from the Pilatus Railway 480‰. But nowhere close to the steepness of a funicular

[@Joe-jd4pn]

The Katoomba scenic railway once serviced a coal mine. So you are wrong

[@mdhazeldine]

I've never been on the Stoosbahn, but I have been on the Pilatus railway and the Rigi railway. Both pretty old and steep funiculars in Switzerland. Not to mention numerous ones on the UK coast. They're always a treat, and kids love them! Another interesting underground one I recently heard about is the Clifton Rocks Railway in Bristol, UK. It was built in 1893 and is now disused, but there is a heritage group trying to restore it (Tim Dunn did a piece on it in his TV series "Architecture that the Railways Built").

[@johnbeaulieu2404]

The Pilatusbahn and the Rigibahn are rack railways. Similar in idea to enable a railway carriage to climb a steeper slope than an ordinary adhesion railway. However a funicular employs a cable running twice the length to pull the carriage uphill and control the speed of the carriage going downhill. Rack railways employ self-propelled vehicles.

[@mdhazeldine]

@@johnbeaulieu2404 You're correct, but I thought funicular just means a railway that goes up a steep hill, not necessarily having to be cable hauled?

[@adrianthoroughgood1191]

@@mdhazeldine Funicular comes from the latin for rope. It has to have 2 cars connected by a cable for it to count as a funicular. The most obvious thing looking at a funicular is the slanted carriages so it's easy to think of that as being the defining characteristic, but in fact it is the cable.

[@Louis-MartinLandry]

Next time you pass by Montreal, take videos of La Grande Roue de Montreal in Old Port to use as stock images of Ferris Wheel! The Wheel of Excellence in England does not seem to exist anymore... and why not show a cool Canadian Wheel, the talles in Canada!

[@SYDTrainsFilms]

We are proud of our train! And despite the use of it it has all the requirements to be the worlds steepest!

[@bfgb9269]

In the Timetable (of SBB App) Funicular are named FUN.

[@heidirabenau511]

FART in Spain is funnier.

[@MarioFanGamer659]

I talk quite a bit about the Rhine-Main region and lo and behold, there is a funicular. More specifically, there is one at the foot Taunus mountain, the heritage funicular Nerobergbahn in Wiesbaden. That one works by pumping water into the upper car and releasing it when the car reaches the bottom.

[@adrianthoroughgood1191]

Is there a pipe to pump the water back to the top? Or is there a water source at the top and they just release the water at the bottom?

[@lucuhu]

As far I know, a cablecar was a option, but a nearby shooting range with the Danger of ricochet bullets from it and the sometimes high winds in the region were enough to sway the planners to a funicular.

[@petesig93]

The Scenic Railway in the Blue Mountains, Australia is steeper. 52 degrees versus 49 degrees.

[@adamlytle2615]

I glanced at the thumbnail for this video a few times today and assumed it was a video from The Tim Traveller before I paid closer attention.

[@marvintpandroid2213]

Like the one in Spa, Belgium.

[@SaturnCanuck]

That was wild. There's one in Niagara Falls.

[@history_leisure]

Technically Orphan Rocker was completely, but wasn’t safe for the public so it was partially deconstructed. You can still support it’s supports without much trouble because part of its in the parking lot

[@RMTransit]

I remember seeing it when I visited and thinking it was wild! IIRC it was constructed right along a cliff side!

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

(05:10) Give yourself the gift that keeps on giving by switching on the subtitles from here and just play no more than ten seconds to enjoy yet another incomprehensible caption cock up. As near as damnit to a guaranteed giggle awaits.

[@MinorLG]

We have a 72.7% funicular where i live. It is the former steepest, and is standard gague

[@KcarlMarXs]

"Where nimbys might be a serious issue" 😂

[@sea80vicvan]

Good adaptation of the funicular and its advantages for creating a rail route where it would otherwise be near impossible.

[@tonywalters7298]

It reminds me of the gateway arch elevator/tramway

[@RMTransit]

Yeah! It's a problem in need of technical innovation, and the solution is very impressive!

[@djhrecordhound4391]

There's still a funicular in Niagara Falls toward the Maid Of The Mist, but I remember a second one that went from Victoria Park up to Fallsview where the Marriott now stands.

[@oversizetraveller]

My local mountain is Stoos and also Rigi😂

[@Devan1191]

Reece, if you ever find yourself in Switzerland, you should definitely check out the Swiss Museum of Transport in Lucerne. They have an exhibit for the Stoos Bahn. Also thinking about your last episode on tunnel boring, there’s also a huge exhibit on the Gotthard base tunnel project.

[@eric_vde]

"Those who like trains will be more excited to choose one over a gondola, which is a terrible reason to choose it." Well you didn't have to personally attack me but I guess you're right.

[@lamegaming9835]

STOOSBAHN!

[@longbranchmike488]

This is the underrated vertical transport video I so desperately needed.

[@ianlowery6014]

The Scenic Railway in Sydney's Blue Mountains is the steepest in the world, running at 53 degrees

[@peternouwen]

Omg! I’m looking só much forward to the first one they build in The Netherlands! 🤩

[@Telcom100]

Wow, spectacular scenery.

[@granthw4993]

Brah the Europeans built the fanciest ski lift I just get chairs on a cable with 1 safety bar

[@kevinconrad6156]

San Diego, you listening.

[@pizzaipinya2442]

In Barcelona we've got 3 funiculars (once we had 4). And all through Catalonia there are some more :)

[@AMPProf]

WANKAVATOR... STROOSBHAN IN TUBES Vertical subway that can climb the tower in that one city in canada

[@Gfynbcyiokbg8710]

No

[@jw_pincus]

How can you mention underground funiculars without mentioning the Carmelit in Haifa, Israel??? It has a fascinating history (including a relatively recent fire that was partly responsible for the replacement of all of the system's trains) and definitely deserves a place in an Israeli transit video- which, between the TLV-JLM high speed line, new Tel Aviv Metro, & Carmelit and cable cars in Haifa, there's definitely enough content for!

[@transitspace4366]

Lyon underground funicular system is even older than Istanbul Tünel, it opened in 1862, more than a century before Lyon metro (wich even converted a former funicular line into a metro line), it really shows how funiculars started underground transit.

[@bearcubdaycare]

The Gateway Arch in St Louis has rotating cars like this. (It's more an elevator than train...but the commonalities seem as significant as the distinctions.)

[@daccrowell4776]

Odd...no mention of the Chattanooga Incline, which still bills itself as the steepest at 72.9%. Tourists think it's a tourist attraction, but it's actually part of Chattanooga's mass transit and provides essential transport between there and the dual town of Lookout Mountain TN/GA. While there is a 2-lane highway between those points, the road cannot handle busses, plus it's quite dangerous in winter. So the Incline is the city's long-term fix for the problem. Plus it's really a few minutes faster, as it goes straight up the mountain face as opposed to winding along and clinging to cliffs at points like the highway does. Plus, the view is astonishing as you rise up from the bottom station on St. Elmo...hence the glass roofs of the cars. And at the top, you can check out the hoist winch...an amazing piece of BIG machinery. It's pretty cool, worth a visit.

[@LerockJohn]

WOW! I have learned a lot in this episode. Thanks!! Peace out!

[@ikal8178]

When MBTA explained

[@anthonypaonita4326]

Try Perugia's Minimetrò sometime.

[@andrewdarley8988]

I guess technically it is a railway but a coach on the end of a rope doesn't feel like a proper train. Not far away the Pilatus Bahn uses self-propelled trains and as far as I know is still the steepest rack railway in the world.

[@een_schildpad]

Very cool to see; quite unique! Thanks Reece and Livio!!

[@magnushultgrenhtc]

Reece: "Does your town need..." Viewers: "You had us at monorail." [all sing]

[@AMPProf]

CHIME IN.... I want that but drumroll: On a regular North American road way! No joke as I age My body no longer loves the bus/tram going up and down hilly areas.

[@bluebear6570]

I have problems accepting funiculars as "raileays". For me, they are rail-bound cable cars, which cannot move on their own, like real trains do. Consequently, the Swiss Pilatusbahn remains the sttepest railway in the world - with a gradient of 48%

[@robertedwardmcmullen]

Good job pronouncing Stoos, for a north american

[@klausolekristiansen2960]

To answer your question: no, Copenhagen does not need a funicular.

[@anumeon]

Finiculars can be finicky but useful. :)

[@geneticdisorder1900]

Another safety issue with gondolas and how high they are off the ground. Merika’s ignorant military fly babies hitting the cable and killing all on board.

[@shanehiggins4983]

Can you do a video on Halifax Nova Scotia? They are currently implementing BRT on congested roads, and even putting one station underground, instead of just putting an LRT or MRT in the denser parts of the city and then expanding them. I would really love to hear what you think about Halifax PT overall. Ty for your work, it's very valuable 🙏

[@massimookissed1023]

Really, if you're afraid of heights, Switzerland isn't the country to be living in.

[@garethbray9017]

I take this train a couple of times a year, it’s absolutely amazing

[@bjturon]

I love this railway with its rotating cabins -- very sci-fi! 🙂

[@pm3390]

Luxembourg build a new funicular a few years ago linking the main business district plateau with a train station below. It was tje best solution to handle large peak crowds (i.e. the train arrives and everyone wants to get up at the same time)

[@lucadecarlo6723]

I live in switzerland Biel/Bienne and my city has 2 funiculairs. Its pretty common for large metroplolitan areas in switzerland to have funiculair´s since many of swiss city´s are half build on slopes.For exemple Lugano from the main station to the old town on a hill or at Neuchatel...etc, the metro of Lausanne(a video that RM did about) is a funiculair...

[@markusstudeli2997]

Besides the Magglingen- and Leubringen funicular, there's another one just about 10 km away, going from Ligerz to Prêles.The so called "Vinifuni" makes its way up through the vinyards, past a pictoresque wedding chapel, all with a great view of Lake Biel and the St. Peter's peninsula. It's the prettiest of the three, no doubt. Yes, we live in a funicular heaven here in Biel!

[@lucadecarlo6723]

@@markusstudeli2997 yes agreed the funiculair there is awsome, very beautiful view 🤩😁

[@lucadecarlo6723]

Btw the seeland and biel lake region is famous in switzerland for the vinards and swiss vine,

[@PAVx_]

Funiculars are fun. It's in the first three letters. ;)

[@Fry_tag]

The city of Karlsruhe, you made a video about it before, also plans to replace an old funicular. The new one will also feature a rotating cabin to allow level stations.

[@biscuit715]

Funicular my beloved

[@alexanderip1003]

I Thought Pilatus is the steepest (48 degree gradient)

[@100dampf]

The Pilatus Railway is the steepest Cog Railway with 480‰ (not degrees), the Stoos Funi is the steepest funiculaire with 1100‰ It's a case of what do you count as a railway