Costs of Cairngorm funicular may outweigh benefits, warns committee

The cost of monitoring and repairing the Cairngorm funicular could outweigh the benefits to the local and national economy, the Public Audit Committee has warned.

The concerns over the costs were published in a new report by the Holyrood committee today.  

The funicular opened in 2001 at a cost of £19.5m but closed in September 2018 for four years due to issues with the track. It was briefly operational again in 2023 before closing again for further repairs and finally reopened in February 2025.  

It has since moved into public hands with Cairngorm Mountain (Scotland) Ltd, a company owned by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).

With the £16m to restore the mountainside rail and a reliance on public finance, the committee has raised concerns about whether the costs of regular monitoring and maintenance may become disproportionate to its benefit.

The committee has also called on the Scottish Government to be more transparent with its plan for the Cairngorm funicular to ensure that the project remains value for money.  

There was also frustration from the committee about the amount of information available to it during its consideration of making a judgment on HIE’s decision-making on the funicular’s future.  

The committee’s convener, Richard Leonard, said: “It is safe to say that the Cairngorm funicular has had a somewhat troubled history, with repeated and lengthy closures and requiring significant public investment.

“This committee has heard from those in charge of the funicular, the public bodies supporting it, those living and working in the area and nature conservation activists. We have heard both optimism and scepticism about what comes next. And it presents a picture of concern for us that the future benefits are not as clear as they ought to be.

“There also needs to be a much more transparent governance structure in place for the running of the funicular. A simplified structure would allow for better public scrutiny of public money and decisions on the future plans for the Cairngorm Mountain resort.”