A Funicular Railway is just that, fun. Also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, a funicular railway normally solves the problem of transporting people up extremely steep slopes. They've been used for hundreds of years and are an extraordinary feat of ingenuity.

A train designed specifically to climb steep grades is typically called a Funicular or a Rack Railway (Cog Railway). A funicular uses a cable system where two cars balance each other—as one ascends, the other descends—allowing them to conquer extremely steep urban or coastal inclines. In contrast, a rack railway uses a third "toothed" rail located between the two standard rails; a cogwheel on the train meshes with this rack, providing the mechanical grip necessary to climb mountains without slipping. Famous examples in 2026 include the Pilatus Railway in Switzerland, the world's steepest rack railway with a gradient of 48%, and the Mount Washington Cog Railway in the United States. For standard rail lines that manage moderately steep hills without a rack system, these are known as "Adhesion Railways," but they are limited to much shallower grades. In 2026, new "battery-electric" cog trains are being introduced in the Alps to make these mountain ascents more environmentally sustainable.