On Tuesday, the Chemins de Fer Luxembourgois (CFL) provided members of the press with a sneak preview of the new funicular that is being constructed with the aim of moving passengers between the currently-under-construction Pfaffenthal train station with Kirchberg, in the presence of François Bausch, Luxembourg's Minister of Sustainable Development and Infrastructure, and Lydie Polfer, Mayor of the City of Luxembourg.
A total of four trains will operate on the two sets of tracks, with each pair connected by steel cables so, as one goes down the double tunnel, the other one comes up, with a "siding" allowing them to pass each other. There is standing room only apart from a very few folding seats for the infirm/disabled.
When operational, the funicular - designed especially for Luxembourg - will transport up to 7,200 people per hour during peak hours. This equates to up to 1,200 people every 10 minutes, corresponding to the set of two trains with 600 passengers. The time for a single journey is one minute. Each cabin is 11.8 metres long and 3.5 metres wide and weighs approximately 17 tonnes. Each is equipped with 16 foldable seats and can accommodate a maximum of 168 passengers per cabin.
The 200m-long funicular climbs 40 metres and is a key element of the "Pfaffenthal-Kirchberg" intermodal transport project, linking the Luxembourg rail network, the future tram, buses and soft mobility.
The pedestrian facilities along the funicular tracks are not designed for pedestrians, but are used only for entering and exitin.; to walk up to Kirchberg from Pfaffenthal in the valley, pedestrians can use the footpath through the woods.
Construction began in May 2015; the CFL is aiming for a 10 December 2017 opening for the new service - a project that is conuuing on time and within budget. As well as completing the funicular and the Pfaffenthal train station, LuxTram are planning for the first phase of the city tram to be operational by then too, allowing passengers from the north of the country to alight at the new Pfaffenthal train station, hop on the funicular for the short hop up to Kirchberg, and then hop on the tram to anywhere along the Abenue JF Kennedy as far as LuxExpo the Box.
Initially, six trains per hour and per direction, will serve the Pfaffenthal train station. In the long term, the CFL plans to transport passengers from the south, directly by train, to this new stop via Luxembourg-gare. Passengers traveling to the Kirchberg from the north of the country will now be able to get off the train a few kilometers before the Central Station, in the immediate vicinity of their destination. This will save considerable time.
Photo by Ian Sanderson
