Wellington, New Zealand

The Wellington Cable Car is a funicular railway in Wellington, New Zealand used by around 1 million people each year. It is located between Lambton Quay, the main shopping street, and Kelburn, a suburb in the hills overlooking the central city, rising 120 m over a length of 612 m.

Originally built in 1902, it has been estimated that the Cable Car has completed 1.2 million trips up and down the hill over that time – and more than 30 million passengers have been carried.

The Cable Car uses regenerative braking so as the cars slows down, or if there are more passengers going down than up, it generates electricity and exports this into the local network. Regenerative braking improves the energy efficiency of the Cable Car and reduces wear on the braking system parts.

The cable car has two cars, which start from opposite ends of the line and pass in the middle. They are attached to each other by a 30mm diameter cable, guided by 120 rollers, which runs round a pulley at the top of the hill. The normal operating speed is 16 kmh, with a maximum load of about 75 passengers.