{{More citations needed|date=November 2015}} {{Infobox rail line |name = Mendel funicular |image = |image_width = |caption = |type = passenger |system = |status = operational |start = Sankt Anton, Kaltern |end = Mendel Pass |stations = 2 |open = October 19, 1903 |close = |owner = |operator = |character = |stock = |linelength = {{convert|2.37|km|abbr=on}} |tracklength = |tracks = |gauge = {{track gauge|1000mm}} |electrification = yes |speed = |elevation = }}
The '''Mendel Funicular''', ({{langx|de|Mendelbahn}}, {{langx|it|Funicolare della Mendola}} {{IPA|it|funikoˈlaːre della ˈmendola|}}) is a funicular railway in Italy. It connects the Überetsch plateau with the Mendel Pass.
== Track == In the twelve minutes of the journey trains rise {{convert|854|m|0|}}. The whole track is located in a rocky region sometimes covered by a forest, and this needs many bridges and tunnels.
== History == The funicular was planned by Emil Strub as part of a link to connect Bolzano with the Mendel Pass, by linking to the St. Anton terminus of the Überetsch Railway. In 1903 Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria opened the line itself after nearly one year of construction. The line was at the time one of the lengthiest funiculars in Europe. Until 1934 tourists could use the funicular and some other railways to make a journey around the Mendel.
== Today == Today{{when|date=November 2015}} the line is still working, and often used by tourists to reach the Mendel Pass. In 2004 there was an accident on the funicular, in which a driver lost his life.
<gallery> Image:FunicolareMendola1-2009.jpg|Arriving at Mendel Pass Image:FunicolareMendola2.jpg|On the line Image:FunicolareDellaMendola Incrocio.JPG|View from behind the driver Image:MendelPass.jpg|At the Mendel Pass </gallery>
== See also == * List of funicular railways
== Further reading== * {{cite book| first=Josef| last=Dultinger| title=Vergessene Vergangenheit| publisher=Verlag Dr. Rudolf Erhard| location=Rum| year=1982}} * {{cite book| first=Josef| last=Dultinger| title=Auf schmaler Spur durch Südtirol| publisher=Verlag Dr. Rudolf Erhard| location=Rum| year=1982}}
== External links == * {{Commonscat-inline}}
{{Railways around the Dolomites}}
{{coord|46.4125|N|11.2194|E|source:kolossus-dewiki_region:IT_type:landmark|display=title}}
{{Authority control}} Category:Railway lines in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol Category:Transport in South Tyrol Category:Funicular railways in Italy Category:Metre-gauge railways in Italy Category:Nonsberg Group Category:Railway lines opened in 1903