Is it time for “the removal of the funicular” at Cairngorm Mountain ski area?

And so the sorry saga of the funicular at Cairngorm Mountain ski area rumbles on. Last autumn, as regular readers of this column will be aware, the concrete pillars supporting the highest railway tracks in the UK were deemed to be structurally iffy. As a result, all trains were cancelled until further notice and Highlands and Islands Enterprise (who took over the running of Cairngorm at the end of last year after the former operators, Natural Retreats, handed back the keys) rushed to implement an emergency plan to rescue the ski season, which included the purchase of a super-sized snow-making machine called a Snowfactory. Happily, this did allow for a small beginner area to be maintained close to the ski area base station, but it was never going to be a substitute for swift, regular trains running to the top of the hill. When I visited the resort on a beautiful spring day in April, staff were using little electric buggies to ferry skiers from the car park up to the snowline in groups of two or three. Kudos for coming up with a way of giving loyal season ticket-holders the best possible experience in difficult circumstances, but clearly souped-up golf carts are not a long-term solution.