In Nizhny Novgorod, from 1896 to 1926, two lines of funiculars successfully operated; they were popularly called elevators.
The total length of the line of the Kremlin funicular was 133.12 m, the vertical drop - 63 meters was overcome in one and a half minutes. It connected the terminal station of the tram line, which ran along Rozhdestvenskaya Street from the exit from the pontoon bridge to Skoba, with a tram line, with the help of which it was possible to get from the Kremlin along Bolshaya and Malaya Pokrovsky streets and further along Pokhvalinskaya street to Smirnovsky garden. Now in its place is the Azimut hotel.
Funiculars did not require electricity, they operated by gravity. Each of the carriages contained a container for water, which was filled in the carriage that was at the top. At the same time, water was drained from the container of the car, which was supposed to lift passengers. Thus, the heavier upper carriage, lowering, lifted the second one up. Calculation of the construction of funiculars was a rather difficult task for that time. It was necessary to provide for different options for loading the cars, for example, even if there were no passengers at all in the upper carriage, its mass should be sufficient to lift the lower fully loaded carriage. At the same time, for safety and comfort, it was necessary to ensure a constant ascent and descent speed. Therefore, the amount of water in the tank could be different.
The stations of the Kremlin elevator were located on opposite sides of the Kremlin wall, that is, they were in line of sight. A tunnel was built under the wall between the North and Clock Tower. Thus, part of the way the funicular car passed through the underground gallery. The cars were equipped with manual and automatic braking systems. Even if the cable that connected the cars was broken, the passengers were not in danger. Interestingly, each carriage had two cabins, separately for seated passengers and separately for standing passengers.
The end of the funiculars was associated with the development of the tram.
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