Cable car
We can start our conversation about the cable car by saying:
Cable cars are public transportation vehicles that move along cables laid under city streets. They are pulled by an underground cable system powered by large engines.
Cable cars were invented in the late 19th century as an alternative to steam locomotives on steep hills.
The first cable car system was installed in San Francisco in 1873.
*History of the cable car:
- 1873 - Andrew Halliday invented the first cable car system in San Francisco after seeing a horse-drawn carriage struggling up a steep hill.
- In the 1880s - Cable car systems spread to more than a dozen other American cities such as Chicago, Kansas City, and Los Angeles.
-In the 1940s and 1950s - many of the cable car systems were dismantled and replaced by streetcars/electric buses, with only San Francisco remaining as a daily transit system.
In 1984, San Francisco's cable car system was declared a National Historic Landmark.
**Design and method of operation:
- The cables pass through a slot between the railway tracks and are held in place by pulleys in the cable car.
The moving cable is powered by large motors and motors located in a central power station.
Cable cars have a mechanism that grabs and releases the cable to start and stop the car.
- Brakes are used to control the speed of the cable car.
- Cable cars require two operators – one to drive and one to collect fares and manage stops.
** Fun facts about the cable car:
San Francisco's cable cars are the only mobile US National Historic Landmarks.
- Cable cars do not use any on-board power - the cars are constantly pulled by cable.
- The cables move at a constant speed of 9.5 mph. The grip slows and accelerates the car relative to that rate.
Maintaining San Francisco's cable car system costs about $6 million annually.
In short, cable cars are distinctive vehicles that operate on constantly moving underground cables and have a rich history as an early urban transportation system.
It provides a unique transportation experience today in the hilly streets of San Francisco.
