History of Larreineta funicular

The Larreineta Funicular railway was inaugurated in 1926 to connect the mining town of La Arboleda with San Salvador del Valle (now called Trapagaran).
Now a 10 minute ride, the distance before the construction of the funicular was an hour and a half, so this train became an essential component in the lives of the miners who lived in La Arboleda.

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A bit of history

  • Funiculars are vehicles that cross great elevations, with a system inspired by the inclined planes used in mining. The majority of the ones built in the Basque Country are for tourism. That is how the first two in the region were built: the Mount Igueldo Funicular in San Sebastian (1912) and the Artxanda Funicular in Bilbao (1915).

  • The Larreineta funicular railway was inaugurated in 1926 to connect the mining town of La Arboleda with San Salvador del Valle (now called Trapagaran). Now a 10 minute ride, the distance before the construction of the funicular was an hour and a half, so this train became an essential component in the lives of the miners who lived in La Arboleda.

  • Named a Cultural Asset under the Monument category, its historical value and social function are remarkable, and so are the adaptation of the design done on it to serve to transport not just people, but also iron ore and vehicles.

  • Euskotren manages the Larreineta funicular that, with its two stops, serves both as public transport for the people living in the area and as a tourist attraction for Trapagaran.

  • The funicular is now an attraction in and of itself given the natural space where it is located, its peculiar route (1,198 metres) and its horizontal platform, which makes it different from the other funiculars in Europe. In fact, in July 2014 the funicular was declared an Asset of Cultural Interest, granting it a specific level of protection to conserve it.