Funivia di San Luca, Aerial tramway in Bologna, Italy.
The Funivia di San Luca was a cable system that ran from 1931 to 1976 between Bologna's Ghisello area, near the junction of via Porrettana and via Andrea Costa, and the Sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca. It was a 1,328-metre to-and-fro line with two 20-person cabins, climbing 220 metres on two spans supported by a single 25-metre concrete pylon. Its stations had no pits for the cabins because the cables were only gently inclined.
A first funicular, proposed by engineer Alessandro Ferretti in 1882, ran in 1888 but closed in July 1889. The SACEF company built the cable car, tested in 1930 and opened on 21 April 1931, inaugurated on 14 May with minister Costanzo Ciano present. Closed in September 1944 during the war, it reopened on 8 April 1950 and ran until 7 November 1976, then was dismantled.
The area near the lower terminus is still called Funivia, after the cableway that stood there. The hill of Colle della Guardia residents used the lift as a public service to reach the city, alongside tourists and pilgrims heading to the sanctuary. The upper station and its concrete pylon remain visible near the sanctuary.
The line is gone: the last run was on 7 November 1976 and the system was later dismantled. The lower terminus stood at Ghisello, near the junction of via Don Luigi Sturzo, via Porrettana and via Andrea Costa, where tram line 11 arrived. The upper station, now abandoned but still visible near the sanctuary, and the 25-metre concrete pylon can be seen on the hill. The valley station was converted into a condominium without major structural change, and the surrounding Bologna district is still called Funivia.
The lower terminus stood at Ghisello, near the junction of today's via Don Luigi Sturzo, via Porrettana and via Andrea Costa, where tram line 11 ended. The Bologna district around it is still called Funivia after the cableway. The line ran 1,328 m with two spans and a single 25 m concrete pylon, and its stations had no pits for the cabins because the cables were only slightly inclined.
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