East Cliff Railway
Encyclopedia
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...
located in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
seaside resort
Seaside resort
A seaside resort is a resort, or resort town, located on the coast. Where a beach is the primary focus for tourists, it may be called a beach resort.- Overview :...
of Bournemouth
Bournemouth
Bournemouth is a large coastal resort town in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. According to the 2001 Census the town has a population of 163,444, making it the largest settlement in Dorset. It is also the largest settlement between Southampton and Plymouth...
. The line serves to link the seaside promenade and beach with the cliff top and the town behind.
The line is owned and operated by Bournemouth Borough Council
Bournemouth (borough)
Bournemouth Borough Council is the local authority of Bournemouth in Dorset, England. The council is now a unitary authority, although between 1974 and 1997 it was an administrative district council with Dorset...
and has the following technical parameters:
- Length: 170 feet (51.8 m)
- Gradient: 68.9%
- Cars: 2
- Capacity: 12 passengers per car
- Configuration: Double track
- Gauge: 5 in 6 in (1.68 m)
- Traction: Electricity
The line was constructed for Bournemouth Corporation, and opened in 1908. It was electrically operated from the start, with winding gear situated at the upper station driven by a 25 hp winding motor. The line was controlled by a driver at the upper station, assisted by an attendant at the lower station. Wooden-bodied cars were used.
The cars were replaced in the 1960s by aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
-bodied cars intended to be interchangeable across all three of Bournemouth's surviving cliff railways. In 1987 the track was re-laid, and during the 1990s the line was further upgraded with the installation of an electronic control system.
The East Cliff Railway is one of three such cliff railways in Bournemouth, the other two being the West Cliff Railway and the Fisherman's Walk Cliff Railway
Fisherman's Walk Cliff Railway
The Fisherman's Walk Cliff Railway, or Southbourne Cliff Railway, is a funicular railway located in Southbourne, a seaside suburb of the English seaside resort of Bournemouth...
. All three operate between April and October.
External links
- Article on Bournemouth's Cliff Railways from The Heritage Trail web site
- Article on Bournemouth's Cliff Railways from the Funicular Railways of the UK web site