Funiculars in Karlovy Vary

Three funiculars existed in Karlovy Vary ( Czech Karlovy Vary ) in what is now the Czech Republic . These funiculars were built in 1907, 1908 and 1912. Two of them are still in operation today. The construction of a fourth railway - a rack railway - began in 1913. However, their construction was stopped a year later because of the outbreak of the First World War .

Divadelní náměstí – Imperial funicular

The first funicular in Karlovy Vary is the meter-gauge railway from Theaterplatz ( Divadelní náměstí in Czech ) to Café Helenenhof ( Helenin dvůr in Czech ) at the Hotel Imperial , which opened on May 18, 1907 . It begins at a height of 381 m and leads over a 127 m long route to a height of 437 m . It has a gradient of 495 ‰ at the steepest point. The railway has a siding and runs completely underground.

In 1980 the railway was initially shut down due to its poor condition. Renovations took place between 1983 and 1987 and it reopened on November 28, 1987. The train has been part of the city's local public transport system since August 1, 1961 and runs every 15 minutes. The travel time is 70 seconds. Due to the location of the valley station in a row of houses, it can easily be overlooked by those unfamiliar with the area.

Diana funicular

The Diana funicular was opened on August 5, 1908 and begins at the Alte Wiese station at a height of 389 m and leads to the friendship height 556 m above sea level, where the Diana observation tower is located. She overcomes the 167 m difference in altitude over a distance of 437 m. The intermediate station is located in the area of the Hirschensprung siding at a height of 473 m . The maximum gradient is 432.3 ‰, on average it is 398.1 ‰. The railway was renovated a total of three times, between 1963 and 1965, 1972 and again between 1984 and 1988. In contrast to the railway to the Hotel Imperial, the Diana railway is not part of the city's public transport. It is also driven every 15 minutes and takes 4 minutes to travel at a speed of 2.04 m / s . The tracks are of type A , the gauge is 1 meter. The empty carriages weighing 7900 kg are designed for 49 + 1 people. The rope has a diameter of 28 mm. The drive power is 51 kW, the drive is regulated with the help of thyristors .

Slovenská – Imperial funicular railway (closed)

Between 1912 and 1959 there was a third funicular in the city. It also led to the Hotel Imperial, was built at the same time as the hotel and opened on June 15, 1912, five years after the tunnel station was completed. Operator was the private company Karlovy Vary electric funicular Westbury . The train started at one of the bathhouses. However, since the valley station at the bathhouse was remote, it was rarely used. That is why it was shut down in 1959.

The track width of the single-track line with a turnout in the middle was 1000 mm. The railway had an electric drive right from the start. It was a total of 126 m long and overcame a difference in altitude of 60 m with a maximum gradient of 575 ‰ (average gradient: 499 ‰). This made it the shortest and steepest of the funiculars in Karlovy Vary. Manufacturer was the Swiss company of L. von Rollschen Eisenwerke in Gerlafingen , the wagons were made of wood, had four compartments (two closed and two open) with 40 seats and doors only on one side. The drive was in the mountain station. The maximum travel speed was 2 m / s.

Tři kříže rack railway (unfinished)

In 1913, the construction of a cog railway with a 500 ‰ gradient between the Sprudelstraße and the Dreikreuzberg ( Czech Vrch Tři kříže ) began. A novel gear rack system Peter should be used. Due to the outbreak of the First World War, construction work was stopped in 1914. After the war this was not taken up again. Remains can still be found on Neue Sprudelgasse today .

In 1967 there were efforts to have the construction completed by the Italian company Ceretti Tanfani , but this was prevented by financial and political reasons. In 2006 the city had four variants of a route examined, and planning was announced for 2007. However, in 2011 the construction was postponed indefinitely.