ITALY: The unusual tramway which links Trieste with Villa Opicina via a cable-hauled incline has reopened after being suspended in 2016.
Two sections of conventional metre-gauge tramway are linked by an incline from Piazza Scorcola at 17 m above sea level to Vetta Scorcola at 177 m above sea level, with two intermediate stops.
Trams are propelled up the hill and braked on the downhill run by cable-hauled tractor cars. This funicular system replaced rack operation which was used from the opening in 1902 until 1928.
The 5·2 km line had coexisted with the city’s urban tramway network which closed in 1970. However, services were suspended after a head-on collision in August 2016, and the subsequent modernisation works were delayed by bureaucratic hurdles.
The first departure on the reopened line at 06.51 on February 2 was crowded with passengers, despite the absence of an official celebration.
One tram dating from 1935 is in use, with a second being used as counterweight on the funicular section. The other trams will return to services as work is completed to upgrade their brakes.
Trieste Trasporti is to operate nine services each way per day until February 16, then 19 until March 2 before increasing to a full service of 29 per day.
Services are initially running from Piazza Dalmatia, a short distance from the Piazza Oberdan terminus which is to be refurbished.
