29
Sep

2023

Weekly Roundup: Eco-Friendly and On-Demand – a New Gondola at LAAX

Post by Gondola Project

Swiss Alps ski resort LAAX Switzerland will soon be welcoming a brand-new gondola to their property after 15 long years of planning: the eco-friendly, on-demand FlemXpress. The FlemXpress, which will remove unused cabins from its track to prevent excess energy consumption and noise pollution, is, surprisingly, inspired by rideshare services like Uber. Image credits to Jörg Angeli (@joerga), CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
  • Steamboat Resort’s new Wild Blue Gondola will be longest and fastest 10-passenger gondola in North America. The first leg of the system opened last year, and with the completion of the new extension this year, the gondola will now travel 3.2 miles in 13 minutes up to some intermediate terrain. The addition will increase the total carrying capacity from 6,000 people per hour (pph) to 10,000 pph.
  • The world’s first on-demand gondola launches December 2023 at LAAX Switzerland resort. The new FlemXpress system will provide better access to UNESCO World Heritage Tectonic Arena Sardona. The first stage of the system will be open to the public for the 2023/2024 winter season. Through the stations, cabins will run self-propelled with no tire conveyors, and empty cabins will be taken off the line to decrease energy use. The system is expected to reduce energy consumption by up to 50% and will have a capacity of transporting 1,500 pph in 10-person cabins.
  • Doppelmayr goes urban as the industry expands. With climate change and warmer environments, Doppelmayr suspects that cable car demand will shift more towards the urban setting; the shift started about 15 years ago. Doppelmayr currently holds the Guinness World Record for the largest public-transit cable car system with the 33-kilometer ropeway network in Bolivia. They continue to build other urban projects such as Cable C1 in Paris, and they are hoping to expand in Asia as well.  


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Want more? Purchase Cable Car Confidential: The Essential Guide to Cable Cars, Urban Gondolas & Cable Propelled Transit and start learning about the world's fastest growing transportation technologies.

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