San Francisco Cable Car

The beloved grip-and-cable streetcar climbing steep hills since 1873/Transportation

San Francisco's cable cars are the last manually operated cable car system in the world and a National Historic Landmark. Andrew Hallidie's invention uses a continuously moving underground cable at 15.5 km/h, which the gripman grasps to pull the car along. A cable car is about 9 m long, 2.4 m wide, and weighs approximately 7,700 kg empty. The system includes three routes, 73 operational cars, and 600-volt electric motors powering the cables from a central powerhouse. About 7 million riders use the system annually.