For those who have been following events in South America, news from Venezuela haven’t exactly been the most bright and cheery recently.
In fact, it has been downright terrifying as observers predict the country is on the brink of economic, social and political collapse.
Mérida Cable Car. Image by Flickr user Wilfredor.
However, if we could find a silver lining to all this, the Mérida Cable Car (Spanish: Teleférico de Mérida) has finally reopened after nearly 8 years of inoperation.
Calling it a “cable car” is somewhat misleading as the Doppelmayr-built ropeway is actually a 5-station network of aerial trams designed in four sections:
- Barinitas – La Montaña (3.4km)
- La Montaña – La Aguada (3.3km)
- La Aguada – Loma Redonda (2.8km); and
- Loma Redonda (3.0km).
To give a short background, the aerial trams were originally built in 1960 for ~$16 million with the help of Swiss, German and French personnel. However, after nearly 50 years of operations, technicians determined in 2008 that system components were now operating well beyond their intended life span.
The cable cars were subsequently shut down and it was not until last week before the system was reopened for “pre-commercial” testing. With the modernization program complete, it will hopefully reinvigorate the local tourism industry as the cable car was Mérida’s top attraction.
And it’s not hard to see understand why the ropeway was so popular — it offers passengers unparalleled panoramic views of the city and nature as they fly from the foot of the Andes (1,577m) to the top of Pico Espejo (4,765m).
Views from Pico Espejo and cable car. Image by Flickr user Nancycven.
While reports online have constantly coined the system as the world’s “highest” and “longest”, this is only partially true — depending on how you define it.
It’s top station is located at 4,765m, which is about 78m lower than the Dagu Glacier Gondola for the world’s highest passenger ropeway. However, at 12.5km in length, it does currently stand as the world’s longest multiple section aerial tram network.
Each cabin holds about 60 persons (40 seated, 20 standing) and the entire 4 section journey takes about 40 minutes to complete. The system is expected to finish its pre-commercial phase and then officially open its gates to the general public in 3-4 months.