- Snowmass Ski Area’s expansion plan in Colorado includes several lifts and a gondola. The Village Express is planned to be upgraded to a 10-passenger gondola. The gondola may be a telemix which would have both gondola cabins and chairs to allow access during both the winter and summer seasons. The 10-year master plan also includes extending Coney Express Quad and adding a mid-station, upgrading the Alpine Springs lift and Elk Camp chairlift to six-packs, and the big-ticket item of expanding Dawdler to have more intermediate terrain. All of the upgrades will increase the resort’s capacity from 12,500 skiers to 14,820 skiers daily.
- Sandia Peak Tramway getting system upgrades in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The aerial tram is undergoing drive and control system upgrades. The upgraded drive will provide passengers with an anticipated quicker ride of 14 and a half minutes. The operating system is being upgraded to a touchscreen-controlled system. The system shut down in January and they are hoping the system will be up and running again by March 14.
- Cable Car over Vltava River turned down by the Environmental Protection Department (EIA) in Prague. EIA concluded that while the project is acceptable relating to environmental protection and carbon emissions, the alignment was the main concern for the system. The system was estimated to carry about 2,300 passengers per hour and cost CZK 2 billion ($85 million). They concluded that the technology would “deviate from the harmonious scale and relationships in the landscape.” The city will now be transferring its efforts towards a new tram line which is estimated to cost about CZK 6.5 billion ($277 million USD).
Image credits to Mike McBey (CC BY 2.0 DEED) via Flickr.