Funiculaire St-Imier - Mont-Soleil 🇨🇭 | Standseilbahn 🇨🇭| Swiss Funicular 🇨🇭

Opened in 1903, this funicular, like many others in the Jura Mountains, was intended to facilitate access to the mountain peaks for the valley residents. In St-Imier, a prosperous watchmaking town and the birthplace of Longines watches, local patrons financed the line, while the municipality donated the land. By the end of 1903, thanks to the easy access to the valley's heights, a local ski club had already been established. From the start of its operation, the funicular was a great success, and this continued until the 1920s when the economic crisis seriously threatened the line. Then, the opening of the road leading to Mont-Soleil, which proved to be a fantastic toboggan run, led to a significant improvement in operating results. Paradoxically, while the rest of the world was engulfed in the horrors of World War II, the funicular was enjoying its golden age, reaching a record of over 230,000 passengers in 1945—figures that have never been equaled since. As the infrastructure was aging, studies for a complete overhaul began in 1997. The chosen design for the refurbishment was a single-cabin funicular powered by a winch. The funding was overwhelmingly approved by the local population at the ballot box, and construction began on August 9, 2002, culminating in an inauguration on November 13, 2003. Year of commissioning: 1903 Renovations: 1913 Increased speed 1937 New metal cars 1963 Station renovations 1969 Engine replacement August 2002 End of operation of the 2-car funicular 2003 Commissioning of the new 1-car funicular Length: 743 m Lower station altitude: 828 m Upper station altitude: 1179 m Vertical rise: 351 m Maximum gradient: 60% Track gauge: 1000 mm Speed: 5 m/s Cars: 1 Seats per car: 60 Capacity per hour: 420 Persons/hour Intermediate stops - 400VAC Electric Drive Single-track operating system without crossings, winch, manual control from the upper station Original manufacturer: Von Roll Current operators: Garaventa, Frey, Gangloff Operator: St-Imier Mont-Soleil Funicular SA