Festungsbahn at Salzburg View from the car standing at the top station, of the car in the bottom station. The crossing point at halfway can be seen, and the bridge through one of the wall defences. February 14 1999 photo Stephen Ford

The Höhensalzburg Festung funicular, at the western end of the castle dominating the Salzburg skyline, was built in 78 days in1892, connecting the castle complex with Festungsgasse. prior to the building of the funicular, the only routes up to the castle were via an oxen track - still unusable by cars today - and the goods funicular, "The Journey" (also in this section). The line was "water powered" until 1959, using water from the cistern under the castle courtyard which filled a tank under the car, counterbalancing the weight of passengers travelling uphill. It is now electrically powered and operated by Salzburg AG. 160 metres long, the line has a maximum gradient of 62%. Known to l ocals as the "Tröpferlbahn" the line is open whenever the castle or any of the restaurants inside is open. Journey time is about 1 minute. The vehicles carry 48 persons, on a 1.04 metre-gauge line and were built in 1992.

Sources
Salzburg AG (http://www.stadtbus.at/content.php)
http://www2.salzburg.info/
http://www.funimag.com/

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updated 1st May 2006
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