The Nizhny Novgorod funicular (historically known as the elevator) is a passenger lift in Nizhny Novgorod that operated from 1896 to 1926 and was reconstructed in 2024. It is the first passenger funicular in Russia connecting the lower and upper parts of the city — from the foot of the Kremlin hill to a station inside the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin. Its unique feature is that part of the route runs beneath the Kremlin wall.

History: proposals and the first elevator

In the second half of the 19th century, Nizhny Novgorod faced a pressing problem of communication between the upper and lower parts of the city (the Upper and Lower markets). In 1879, contemporaries noted that the steep ascents were so grueling that "few cabmen dared to use them," and a horse "could not pull even a light carriage up them, even at a walk."[1]

The first concrete technical proposal came from Nizhny Novgorod mechanical engineer V.I. Kalashnikov: in August 1885 he approached the city authorities with a project for a steam-powered lift "with oil heating" along the Ivanovskiy Descent, offering to build it at his own expense in exchange for a 12-year monopoly.[1] In late 1886, St. Petersburg entrepreneur R.K. von Hartmann proposed installing a lift with two independent cars on hydro-pneumatic steam traction near the Zelensky Descent — at house no. 4, occupied by Burmistrova's shop. The petition was considered at a session of the city duma on 17 June 1888, chaired by the deputy mayor A.S. Gatsiskiy; the special commission included N.A. Bugrov, Ya.Ye. Bashkirov, A.A. Dobrov, V.M. Lemke, A.A. Savelyev, and A.M. Memorsky.[1]

The concession project for a horse-drawn railway by S.V. Uzemblo and F.I. Gerle (1889) also provided for "lifting machines": the one-way fare was not to exceed 5 kopecks during the day and 10 kopecks at night, and all staff were required to be recruited primarily from residents of Nizhny Novgorod.[1] The impetus for a practical solution was provided by preparations for the 16th All-Russian Industrial and Art Exhibition of 1896: in September 1893, St. Petersburg engineer A.V. Evald proposed to the city mayor, Baron D.N. Delvig, the construction of "a funicular railway along the steep bank of the Volga" modeled on Swiss examples.[1]

The funicular was ultimately built in 1896 by the "Finnish Light Steamship Company" of the same von Hartmann — in time for the opening of the All-Russian Industrial and Trade Exhibition. Two such structures were built: the Kremlin elevator ran from the Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist to a station inside the Kremlin near the Clock Tower, while the Pokhvalinsky one ran along the descent of the same name.[2] The Kremlin elevator's route measured 131 metres in length.[2] The lift operated without electricity on the "upper car" principle: the upper car's tank was filled with water, and its greater weight pulled it downward while the lower car — with its tank emptied — rose upward. Each car was divided into two classes: standing and seated.[2]

Closure and the Soviet Period

After the outbreak of the First World War, difficulties arose with the supply of components from Germany, which affected the elevator's operation. This was followed by a period of idleness brought on by the revolution and the Civil War. Nevertheless, the funicular survived these events and operated for a total of around 30 years: it was finally closed in 1926, by which time the city already had a well-developed tram network.[2] During the Great Patriotic War the facility was used as a secure communications bunker; later, the tunnel was converted into a storage depot. During postwar landscaping of the area around the Kremlin, the track bed was levelled, the tunnel was filled in, and the point where it had passed beneath the Kremlin wall was bricked up.[2]

Reconstruction of the Funicular (2019–2024)

The question of restoring the elevator had been raised periodically since Soviet times. The idea took concrete shape in 2019, when the reconstruction of the funicular on its historic site using modern technology was officially announced. The initial estimated cost was approximately 500 million rubles, with the opening planned for 2021 — to coincide with the 800th anniversary of Nizhny Novgorod.[2]

The first stage consisted of archaeological excavations in 2019 covering an area of around 500 square metres: specialists uncovered an old water tower — part of the original elevator — which definitively established the location of the upper station.[2] Alongside the construction, extensive landslide-prevention works were carried out: the slopes of the Kremlin were found to be in a critical condition and were reinforced using hundreds of bored piles and seven retaining walls; the foundations of the Kremlin wall along the section from the Clock Tower to the North Tower were also strengthened.[2][4]

Construction continued for more than three years. According to Dmitry Gryzin, the Managing Director of the Nizhny Novgorod Region government, the final estimated cost of the project came to 1.8 billion rubles.[4] In August 2024, the funicular received its permit for commissioning.[4] It opened to visitors in September 2024.[2]

The reconstructed funicular has two stations: the upper one inside the Kremlin and the lower one beneath the Kremlin wall. The architectural appearance of the lower station closely follows the historical original. Through a stained-glass floor panel at the upper station, visitors can view the preserved foundation of the historic water tower. Each car holds up to 40 passengers; the route is approximately 130 metres long.[2][4] There is no other structure of this kind in Russia — with a tunnel running beneath the walls of an ancient kremlin.[4]

Sources

  1. opentextnn.ru — Krasnov V.V. First in Russia: Passenger Funiculars (Elevators) of Nizhny Novgorod — OPEN TEXT (archive)
  2. GIPERNN — The Funicular in the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin: History, Price, and How It Works (archive)
  3. GTRK "Nizhny Novgorod" (Vesti) — ������������� ��������� — ������������ � ������ � ����� ��������������������� ������ (archive)
  4. interfax-russia.ru (archive)