A funicular () is one of the modes of transport, along with a cable railway and an inclined elevator, which uses a cable traction for movement on a steep slope.
A funicular employs a pair of vehicles which are pulled on a (a) slope by the same cable which loops over a pulley wheel at the upper end of a track. Both vehicles are (b) permanently attached to the opposite ends of the cable in such a way as to (c) counterbalance each other and (d) move synchronously: while one vehicle is ascending the other one is descending the track. These particularities distinguish funiculars from other types of cable railways. Counterbalance of two vehicles is also a distinguishable feature of funiculars which separates them from inclined elevators.
Funiculars are used for moving both passengers and goods. The name "funicular" itself is derived from the Latin word funiculus, the diminutive of funis, which translates as " rope ".
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