Funicular

Synonyms / Other Terms Used

Funicular Railway, Cable Railway, Cableway, Wireway, Rack Railway, Rack-and-pinion Railway, Cog Railway, Cogwheel Railway

Category

Transportation, Transport Facilities, Transport Modes, Travel, Tourism, Public Facilities, Public Services, Concessions

Message / Function

To indicate the location of cable railways or rack railways

	Source	Description
1)	DIN 75	Side view of funicular in outline with pantograph, door, and three windows on rising rail, two wheels visible
	BS 8501:2002	Side view of funicular with five windows on rising rail, four wheels visible
	Lugano	Side view of funicular with four windows on rising rail, four wheels visible
	SWISSTRAFFIC	Side view of funicular with four windows on rising rail, four wheels visible
	VSS	Side view of funicular with seven windows on rising rail, two wheels visible
	Saas-Fee	Side view of funicular with six windows, two wheels visible, track indicated by dashed line
	SN 640 827	Side view of funicular with five windows on rising track, two wheels visible
	SBB Kursbuch	Side view of funicular with three windows and two wheels visible, rising track
	DSS	Side view of funicular car body with five windows, two wheels visible
2)	ÖNORM A 3011	Side view of funicular car body with five windows, rising track
	Aragón	Side view of funicular car body with four windows, rising track
	Eco-Mo Foundation	Side view of funicular car body with four windows, rising track
	EJP	Side view of funicular car body with four windows, rising track
	FHS	Side view of funicular car body with four windows in outline, rising track
	Galicia	Side view of funicular car body with four windows, rising track
3)	SLVA	Side view of funicular car body with four windows, rising track
	Catalunya	Side view of funicular car body with windows, rising track
	Unknown	Side view of funicular car body with three windows, rising track on arches

Discussion

There is only limited data available concerning symbols or pictograms used to signify cable or rack railways.

Responses from a Comprehension Test available for the variants marked 1) to 3) (Brugger, 1977) indicate that to the general public the term Funicular and this specific type of transportation is not as well known as the more common passenger vehicles. It seems that a large percentage of persons clearly identified the aspect of mountain / upwards transportation, but displaying a pantograph as in the pictogram marked 1) elicited the highest number of wrong responses.

In a Japanese study to propose domestically unified graphical symbols based on scientific methods, the pictogram variant labeled as Eco-Mo Foundation in the table above reached a comprehension score of 57.3, a value similar to the results from Austria for the ÖNORM symbol (Eco-Mo Foundation, 2001).

Recommendations

Funicular

Based on test results available we recommend the use of symbol No 50 of ÖNORM A 3011 Part 2 to signify cable railways or rack railways as it does not contain any unnecessary details and seems well comprehensable.

Further studies conducted in locations that offer this specific kind of transportation and based on a wider range of pictogram variants are recommended to clarify this subject and support or correct this recommendation.

Tests of pictograms of referent Funicular

Brugger, Ch. (1978): Bericht über die Auswertung des Erkennungstests von November/Dezember 1977. Report to the Austrian Standards Institute (ON) dated 6. 3. 1978, Vienna.

Eco-Mo Foundation (2001): Test data of public information symbols in Japan - Procedure for the testing of public information symbols by the Study Committee. ISO: ISO/TC 145/SC 1 N 329.