Penang Hill Railway

     Penang Hill Railway
Overview
Type Funicular
Status Operational
Locale Penang Hill, Penang, Malaysia
Stations 3
Services 2
Operation
Opened October 21, 1923
Operator(s) Penang Hill Railway
Rolling stock 4 cars (2 cars for each section)
Technical
Track length 2,220 meter
Track gauge 1000 mm
Route map
Legend
 Upper station
Viaduct station
Lower station

The Penang Hill Railway is a one section funicular railway which climbs Penang Hill from Air Itam, near George Town on the island of Penang in Malaysia. The total journey takes about ten to twenty minutes. The train may stop at other intermediate stations upon request.[1]

Construction of the railway took place between 1906 to 1923, at a cost of 1.5 million Straits dollars. The railway was opened to the public on October 21, 1923. New cars were provided in 1977.

From February 2010 until April 25, 2011 [2], the railway was closed while being upgraded and for new cars to be purchased to increase the passenger capacity and the speed of the train. The new train and current railway, unlike the railway before 2010, does not require passengers to change trains half way up. Passengers have non-stop service in air conditioned cars. The blue, air-conditioned Swiss-made coaches, capable of ferrying up to 100 passengers at one go, run every half hour from 6.30am to 9pm daily.

The new RM73mil system replaces the 87-year-old funicular railway, which was closed in February 2010.[3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]

The lower section of the funicular has the following technical parameters:[15]

The upper section of the funicular has the following technical parameters:[16]

Contents

Fares & Tickets

For Malaysians, the fare for a return ticket is RM8 per adult and RM4 per child aged between three and 12. Senior citizens will enjoy cheaper fares at RM4 per person.

The ride continues to remain free of charge for disabled persons holding the OKU card.

Also unchanged are the fares for Penang Hill residents, licensed traders and hawkers and workers, who can purchase monthly season pass at RM24.

Gallery

References

  1. ^ "Penang Hills Funicular Railway". Joe Thompson. http://www.cable-car-guy.com/html/ccoznz.html#penang. Retrieved March 12, 2007. 
  2. ^ "Penang Hill train resumes service". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/6/9/nation/8862759&sec=nation. Retrieved 19 August 2011. 
  3. ^ "Railway opening delayed". Bernama.com.my. http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v5/newsgeneral.php?id=533099. Retrieved October 8, 2010. 
  4. ^ "Slow or fast ride, that’s the question now". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/3/26/north/8350777&sec=North. Retrieved March 26, 2011. 
  5. ^ "Up Penang Hill in five minutes". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/3/20/nation/8310719&sec=nation. Retrieved March 20, 2011. 
  6. ^ "A new joy ride up the hill". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/3/26/north/8335088&sec=north. Retrieved March 26, 2011. 
  7. ^ "Railing for a new lease of life". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?sec=north&file=/2011/3/26/North/8351899. Retrieved March 26, 2011. 
  8. ^ "New hill railway coaches ready for the ride". allmalaysia.info. http://allmalaysia.info/2010/08/20/new-hill-railway-coaches-ready-for-the-ride/. Retrieved August 20, 2010. 
  9. ^ "A new chapter begins". allmalaysia.info. http://allmalaysia.info/2010/02/22/a-new-chapter-begins/. Retrieved February 22, 2010. 
  10. ^ "Mixed response to hill project". allmalaysia.info. http://allmalaysia.info/2009/05/18/mixed-response-to-hill-project/. Retrieved May 18, 2009. 
  11. ^ "All set to soar uphill Handover of refurbished funicular train today". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/3/19/north/8303982&sec=north. Retrieved March 19, 2011. 
  12. ^ "Penang Hill funicular trains to attract more tourists". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/3/19/nation/20110319154355&sec=nation. Retrieved March 19, 2011. 
  13. ^ "Penang Hill train service delayed". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/1/5/nation/7733694&sec=nation. Retrieved January 5, 2011. 
  14. ^ "Service to resume soon". The Star Online. http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2011/3/29/north/8364446&sec=north. Retrieved March 29, 2011. 
  15. ^ "Penang Hill Railway (section 1)". Funiculars.net. http://www.funiculars.net/line.php?id=245. Retrieved March 12, 2007. 
  16. ^ "Penang Hill Railway (section 2)". Funiculars.net. http://www.funiculars.net/line.php?id=594. Retrieved March 12, 2007. 

External Link

Existing lines
Future lines
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Rolling stock