54 n TRANSPORT July/August 2026 www.drivesncontrols.com Inverter upgrade keeps Scarbrough’s historic cliff lift running Scarborough’s Spa Cliff Lift, commissioned in 1875, was Britain’s first seaside funicular railway. It connects the South Cliff Esplanade to the city’s Spa area. It operates on the counterbalance principle, with two cars linked by a cable – one ascends as the other descends. Each car can carry 20 passengers, providing safe form of transport for both residents and visitors. During more than 150 years of operation, the lift’s operating system has undergone several technological evolutions. Originally, two gas-fired engines pumped seawater to fill a tank in the car at the top of the incline, which then descended powered by gravity, pulling the second car up from the bottom station at the same time. When the top car reached the bottom, after a 40-second journey, its tank was emptied, and the process started again. Over the years, the propulsion system transitioned from hydraulic to a cokefuelled steam system, and then, in the 1930s, to an electric system powered by a 90hp (67kW) motor. Following a health and safety review in 2019, the lift’s control system was deemed no longer suitable for safe operation. As a result, Nottingham-based Taylor Lifts was appointed to design and implement a new motion system, and to perform a complete overhaul of the lift’s control and drive systems, including the introduction of new signalling equipment, operator stations and control panels. Part of this work involved installing a 75kW inverter operating in a closed-loop arrangement to drive the lift system, ensuring precise control of speed, torque and braking. The WEG ADL300 inverter operates with relay-based logic (manual control) and parallel I/O communications, to aid reliability. The modernisation project has helped to preserve an important piece of British engineering heritage for future generations. n Scarbrough’s Spa Cliff Lift, commissioned more than 150 years ago and originally powered by seawater, has been given an overhaul to bring its drive and control systems up to 21st century standards. The upgrade included the installation of a closed-loop inverter system. An overhaul has given the Scarborough Spa Cliff Lift a new lease of life A new control panel incorporates a 75kW inverter to drive the lift system The lift’s winch system
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