The Saltburn Cliff Lift is a funicular railway in Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Redcar and Cleveland in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England.

The original cars have been replaced with aluminium counterparts and the top station restored, but little of the underlying mechanism has been changed since it was installed.

Owned since the Second World War by the unitary authority of Redcar and Cleveland and its predecessors, the lift remains in regular use between March and October each year.

[6] The boom in tourism stimulated local businesses to capitalise on the new demand, resulting in various new ventures and projects, including Saltburn Pier, which was completed during 1869.

A balance tank attached to the wooden lift cage was filled or emptied, For stability, ropes were run inside the tower between the cliff top and beach level.

[1] Passengers approached the hoist top via a narrow walkway supported on timber trestles jutting from the cliff face, boarded the cage and descended 120 feet (37 m).

[2] Following the sale of Saltburn Pier Company to the Middlesbrough Estate in August 1883, the new owners commissioned an inspection of the Cliff Hoist by independent engineers.

[1] Tangye appointed the engineer George Croydon Marks as the head of the lift department and he took charge of the design and installation at Saltburn.

Most of the machinery was provided from Tangye, the cars were fabricated by the Birmingham-based rolling stock manufacturer Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Company, and the gas-powered water pump was produced by Manchester-based engineering firm Crossley Brothers.

[11] Marks' design for the cliff lift was so good that, that beyond routine maintenance and the occasional refurbishment, little of the mechanism has been changed since its installation during 1884.

[13][citation needed] During late 2017 and early 2018, the cliff lift was closed for a £500,000 restoration programme following an in-service breakdown; mechanical elements were replaced including all sleepers which were changed to steel to prolong the life along with repairs to the existing sleeper concrete supports, rails, cast iron items which were re-cast at a local foundry from the original components, emergency Scotch Timber braking system along with electric control systems and some lighting.

[14][better source needed][5] During its refits and restoration, an emphasis has been placed on retaining original parts; where replacement items have been necessary, they have usually been created in the style of their forebears.