Cable car

Today one of my favourite postcards showing a cable car in Wellington, New Zealand. I like it for few reasons. One of the them is the person who sent it to me- my boyfriend. That train is a part of his daily life. I love the colour of it and the train itself. It is widely recognized as a symbol of Wellington.

Cable Car is Wellington's most popular tourist attractions. The cars run from Lambton Quay in the commercial heart of the city, tunnel under the corporate towers of The Terrace and emerges in Kelburn.

The ride continues past Kelburn Park and the Victoria University to the top of Upland Road, where the Lookout, Carter Observatory, Planetarium and Cable Car Museum are located. The view from the lookout takes in the city's central business district and out across the harbour to the Hutt Valley, Eastbourne and Mt. Victoria

Cable Cars history takes us back to the end of 19th centaury when Wellington was expending rapidly and there was a need for a new transportation. In 1898 the City Council granted permission for the investition of building a tramway connecting Kelburn and the city. The designer of the system was James Fulton and he was responsible for both selecting the route and deciding the method of operation, a hybrid between a cable car and a funicular. Like a cable car, the line had a continuous loop haulage cable that the cars gripped using a cable car gripper, but it also had a funicular-style balance cable permanently attached to both cars over an undriven pulley at the top of the line. It was opened to the public on 22 February 1902. Since 1947 the Cable Car is owned and operated by Wellington Cable Car Ltd, owned by Wellington City Council.

The normal operating speed is 18 km/h (5 m/s), with a maximum passenger load of around 100 (30 seated, 70 standing). Each car weighs approximately 13.5 t when empty and 21 t when full.