Cairngorm Funicular May Be Working Again Within A Month

The key funicular railway at Scotland’s Cairngorm Mountain may be working again before the New Year, or early in 2025, public body Highlands & Islands Enterprise (HIE) which owns the centre has announced.

The lift is crucial to the centre’s operation as, having removed other lifts that linked the base and top stations, it is the only way to get up. It has been closed for much of the past six years with multiple repairs leading to two lengthy closures.

“The funicular railway at Cairngorm Mountain looks set to be back in action towards the end of December or early in the new year. Contractor Balfour Beatty has confirmed that, weather permitting, its current programme of remediation works on the viaduct that supports the railway is due to finish in the next week to 10 days, after which teams working for the company plan to demobilise from the mountainside,” an HIE spokesperson said.

After works end the focus will then shift to a series of important follow-up actions that have to be carried out before the funicular can carry passengers again. These include mechanical safety inspections and testing, trial runs and staff training.

“This will, unfortunately, mean the funicular will not be back in service for the official launch of Cairngorm Mountain’s 2024/25 winter season, Friday 20 December, as had been hoped. However, it does appear that the long wait for the service to resume and enable visitors to access the ski area quickly and easily by rail again will soon be over,” the HIE spokesperson added.

The funicular was withdrawn from service for a second time in August 2023 not long after it had re-opened following a previous two-year closure. An inspection found that tension in some ‘scarf joints’ that link beams with 94 piers along the 1.8km length of the viaduct was below the recommended level.

Retensioning these joints – and ensuring that tension is maintained – has been a core element of the remediation programme, which has been led by Balfour Beatty under contract from Cairngorm Estate owner Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).

Tension in beams and diaphragms that are essential for load distribution has also been carefully examined and adjusted as required, and associated grouting has been carried out on the piers.

Last winter experienced skiers had the option of taking a first lift, then hiking uphill in ski gear carrying their gear for 10 minutes or so to a second lift to get to the top.

“Return to service will mark the end of a difficult few years for HIE and its subsidiary Cairngorm Mountain (Scotland) Ltd, which operates the resort,” the HIE spokesperson concluded.

The works on the publicly-owned funicular have cost many tens of millions of pounds, which has caused unhappiness at several of Scotland’s four other privately-run ski centres which have battled to operate on tight budgets.