Tři Kříže Funicular

Tři Kříže is an unfinished funicular railway in Karlovy Vary, and one of the town's more unusual attractions precisely because it was never completed. The line was meant to run from Vřídelní street up to the Tři kříže (Three Crosses) hill, a spot that offers one of the best views over the spa quarter of the town.

Why was the railway never finished?

The decision to build the line was made back in 1908, but construction only began in the winter of 1913. Like the still-operating Diana funicular, the project was meant to be run by the city, and a hotel was also planned next to the upper station. The technical design came from the Swiss engineering firm H. H. Peter, the same company behind the Diana line, while the Austrian firm Rella und Neffe carried out the construction work.

The outbreak of the First World War in the summer of 1914 halted construction. After the war, the track bed and an intermediate station were finished, but the line itself was never put into operation. Remarkably, throughout the entire project, it was never conclusively decided whether the railway would be a cable-hauled funicular or a rack railway — a dilemma that followed the project from beginning to end.

What alternative routes were considered?

Several concepts circulated around the project over the years. Planners considered extending the existing Imperial funicular, a variant running through Tři kříže all the way to Goethe's viewpoint, and an entirely different route — a funicular reaching Tři kříže from the opposite direction, starting at the city cemeteries. None of these alternatives was ever built.

Was there ever an attempt to finish it?

The project came closest to being revived in 1967, when the Italian company Ceretti Tanfani offered to repair all of Karlovy Vary's funicular railways, including completing the Tři kříže line. The city rejected the offer for financial and political reasons, and the idea was never seriously revisited afterward.

What remains today?

Even though the railway was never completed, its route is still clearly traceable in the landscape in several places, making it an interesting technical monument today. The only surviving above-ground structure is the Panorama intermediate station building, though it suffered heavy damage in a fire in 1998 and today looks more like a ruin than a railway station.

Frequently asked questions

Can you actually ride this railway today? No — the line was never finished and has never carried passengers. What visitors can explore instead are the traces of its route and the remains of the Panorama station.

Why did construction fail? The main reason was the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, which interrupted work at its most intensive phase. After the war, there was no longer the determination or funding to finish the project, and ongoing disagreement over the technology (cable funicular versus rack railway) kept delaying any final decision.

Can you still walk along the old route? Yes, the trace of the former line is partially visible on the ground and is of interest to visitors looking for unusual historical sites around Karlovy Vary.

Are there any plans to complete the railway? Since the Italian company's offer was rejected in 1967, no serious plans to finish the line have been considered again.