In honor to the 150 years of the funicular anniversary, a commemorative plaque was unveiled by David Dorosz, Deputy Mayor of Budapest and Tibor Bolla, CEO of BKV.
Before going to the day’s event, just a peck into Budapest the Capital of Hungary which is considered as the Pearl on the Danube River. The Danube may seem like just another iconic waterway as it is rolling through Budapest, but in the XIXth Century the river actually was dividing line between the two cities Buda and Pest, which were joined by bridges in 1873 and become as one Budapest the Capital.
On March, 2. 1870, the second such means of transport to the public in the world. The Buda Castle Funicular is operated by Budapest Transport Company Ltd.
The renewed, now electric-powered funicular carriages are named ont he right side as Margit showing the direction to the Margaret Island and Gellért on the left side indicating the site to the Gellért Hill, which are also places visited by tourist staying in Budapest. The three-steps cabin rebuilt and remained design and pendulum-like operation
They can carry 8 or 24 passengers per cab, and, as originally designed, run up and down in parallel.
It is one of the most popular sights of the capital today with its unique Danube panorama and part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Buda Castle Funicular, previously was called Buda Hill Railway. The construction was initiated by Ödön Széchenyi, son of Count lstván Széchenyi. The fusion of Buda and Pest, the Compromise and the subsequent urban development plans helped the realization of the initiation, which aimed a simpler approach to the ministries, offices and the Castle Theater in the Castle.
The plans were created by Ödön Jaruszek and modified by Henrik Wolfahrt, who later directed the construction works, too, which started in 1868. The construction site of the Hill Tracks was appointed at the Chain Bridge abutment on Buda side. At the lower end of the tracks, located at the Buda abutment of the Chain Bridge, a large, impressive hall was built, and a simpler reception building at the upper station. The length of the normal-gauge tracks, with 30-degree slope and a 50-meter elevation, was 95 meters. The steam-powered vehicles were manufactured in Vienna. The carriages consisted of 3 tiered cabins with the capacity of eight passengers each, and they were joined together with two wire ropes running like a pendulum
Traffic started on the Buda Hill Tracks on March, 2. 1870. The novelty, which at that time really served as a means of public transport, gained popularity very soon, with many well-known passengers on board. In addition to Franz Joseph, the Brazilian emperor also traveled on it, but there were many Hungarian politicians, prime ministers and ministers who used it for going to work. Although there were many plans for its conversion and electrification, it remained essentially unchanged until 1944. During the siege of Budapest in World War II, it got badly damaged by a bomb, and after this, finally, a decision was made on its demolition.
Nevertheless, its restoration was never finally off the agenda, but it had to wait until 1986, when it was reconstructed on its original location, adapted to the historic environment and its old appearance, but according to the technical requirements of the time.
Update, snaps © by Aggie Reiter
Rolling in Budapest 