Weekly Roundup

14
Apr

2023

Weekly Roundup: Afyonkarahisar’s Dream Nears Reality as Progress Continues on Turkish Cable Car Line

Afyonkarahisar Castle, a historical fortification located in Western Turkey, will soon be home to a cable car that will connect it to nearby Erdal Akar Park. Once the ropeway is complete, citizens and tourists alike will be able to take a scenic ride between the two points and enjoy a unique view of the city. Image credit: “Burgberg Afyonkarahisar 03” by Ingeborg Simon, (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons.
  • Dursey Cable Car’s opening date has been postponed.  The cable car had been set to open on Easter, but was delayed due to bad weather and sea conditions that make essential repairs challenging. The system was closed in March of 2022 to replace the towers and was supposed to reopen in November of 2022. Unfortunately, delays continue, and officials now say the system will be open to the public by early April. Once the new track ropes are installed, the system can be inspected. Once the system receives approval from the Commission for Railway Regulations, the system will be able to begin operation once again. See a related weekly roundup here.
  • The Afyonkarahisar Castle cable car in Turkey is under construction. The cable car will travel 585 meters from Akar Park to Karahisar Castle. The system will have two stations and eight cabins. The excavations, building foundations, and utilities have been completed, and the system is anticipated to open in August.
  • Summit Triple is to be replaced by Mountaineer Express at Attitash Mountain Resort in New Hampshire. Summit Triple did its last loop before retiring to be replaced by a high-speed quad supplied by Leitner-Poma. The new lift will increase the capacity from 1500 people per hour (pph) to 2400 pph. The Mountaineer Express will decrease the ride time from the previous 16-to-18-minute ride to 6 minutes.
  • Dominica will be building the world’s longest monocable. The 6.6 km monocable detachable gondola (MDG) will connect the world’s second-largest boiling lake to the capital city Roseau. The system will increase accessibility and job opportunities while preserving the island’s cultural and natural heritage. Doppelmayr will be constructing the project.


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07
Apr

2023

Weekly Roundup: ‘Mexicable 2 – Línea Verde,’ an Exciting New Chapter in Mexico’s Public Transit Story

Image courtesy of LEITNER.


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31
Mar

2023

Weekly Roundup: High-Tech Gondolas On the Horizon for the Lone Star State

Plano, TX, is the first city to show interest in the autonomous gondolas pitched by the state’s Regional Transportation Council. These high-tech gondolas, if successfully completed, would to relieve traffic in the Lone Star State’s most congested and populated areas. Image: “DART Downtown Plano station” by Danazar, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.


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24
Mar

2023

Weekly Roundup: Proposed Upgrades to Taos Ski Valley Include New and Improved Transit Options

Improvements to the New Mexican resort set to include a brand new gondola line, two advanced chairlifts, additional trails and skiing areas, and upgrades to existing tourist, dining, and comfort facilities. Image credit: “Taos Ski Valley, New Mexico,” by Murray Foubister, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
  • The Welsh government is to contribute £4 million for the Skyline Swansea. This is one of the largest investments into the tourism and hospitality sector for the Country of Wales. Skyline Enterprises wants the Skyline Swansea to connect the Hafod-Morfa Copperworks area to the top of Kilvey Hill, where there will be activities such as luge runs, zipline, sky swing, and trails. See a related Weekly Roundup here.
  • The Taos Ski Valley resort in New Mexico is awaiting approval for a new gondola. The draft environmental assessment for the project, as well as other proposed developments, is under review. The U.S. Forest Service has already approved the resort’s master plan. The gondola would connect the resort’s frontside main base with Kachina Basin to alleviate traffic congestion. Public comments close in early April, and construction for the gondola is anticipated to begin this summer. Other projects in the area are to replace two lifts with faster, higher-capacity lifts.
  • The Federal Mint Swissmint launched a new silver coin featuring the Klien Matterhorn cable car. The coin is part of the “Swiss special coins” brand to mark the construction of the new cable car between Zermatt and Italy. The coin has the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise mountain station and a modern 3S cabin.


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17
Mar

2023

Weekly Roundup: Discover the Highest Ski Lift in the World

The Aiguille du Midi, also sometimes known as the “Needle of the Mid-Day,” is home to the tallest and steepest ski lift in the world. It is popular not only with skiers, but tourists too – the ride features breathtaking panoramic views, and the upper station boasts terraces, viewing areas, a souvenir shop, and a cafe regarded as one of the highest restaurants in the world .
  • The city of Seoul plans to build a gondola across the Han River. The intention is to connect major leisure attractions and cultural sites on the river’s banks. While station locations have not yet been selected, there are four options currently being examined. The local government will start accepting construction proposals after doing initial environmental impact and technical feasibility studies. There is no timeline for the project.
  • The world’s highest ski lift is in one of the oldest resorts in France, Chamonix Mont-Blanc. The Aiguille du Midi cable car rises a total of 9,209 feet in just 2.3 miles. The system has three stations total, with the elevation for the lower, mid, and upper stations being 3,392 feet, 7,602 feet, and 12,395 feet, respectively. The journey from the mid station to the upper is the steepest vertical climb by any ski lift in the world. The system is not only used by skiers, but over the years has become a popular tourist attraction due to its beautiful panoramic views.


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10
Mar

2023

Weekly Roundup: Take a Ride from Bed to Bath and Back with Hotel Iyaonsen’s New Cable Car

Iya Valley
Hotel Iyaonsen is one of Japan’s most isolated hotels, featuring secluded, scenic views and beautiful open-air baths. Their new cable car lift will ferry guests from the hotel down to the hot springs, gifting them with gorgeous, panoramic view of the Iya Valley in the process. Image: “Iya Valley” by ©Christian Kaden on Flickr (Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0).


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03
Mar

2023

Weekly Roundup: Ministry of Environment Approves Cable Car Project in South Korean National Park

A scenic view of Mt. Seorak, South Korea, from near the site of the current cable car line; the construction of a second line has been approved and is set to begin operation in 2026, provided that it follows all of the environmentally-conscious conditions put into place by the Ministry of Environment. Image: “Seoraksan National Park, near cable-car” by Olga Lipunova, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
  • Mount Seymour in Vancouver, Canada, will have a new chairlift for the 2023-24 winter season. The newly revamped quad chairlift will increase capacity by 70% over the original lift, traveling 2.3 meters per second and having larger chairs. The new lift will replace the existing Lodge chairlift that serves the base area to the lowest point of skiable terrain. A notable feature of the new lift is the improved speed of the conveyor loading skiers. Construction is set to be completed during the summer.
  • The cable car project on Mount Seorak has been approved. Mount Seorak is part of a national park in Gangwon, South Korea. The project was approved by the Ministry of Environment, but comes with a number of conditions related to protecting the environment. The vision for a project of this kind dates back to 1982, when a cable car was first proposed. It would be the second cable car on Mount Seorak, with the first one having opened in the 1970’s. If the project moves forward, the system is expected to begin operating in 2026 and will cost over 50 billion won ($38 million USD).
  • New Hampshire’s iconic tram is close to retirement, and there exists some controversy surrounding what type of cable-propelled system should replace it. The original tram began operation in 1938 and was the first passenger aerial tram in North America; the 1938 tram was replaced in 1980 with the current system, and with another substitution now on the horizon, locals are insistent that system type remain the same. State officials are leaning towards installing a gondola, which would be cheaper and faster than the tram due to the increased frequency of the cabins arriving at the stations.


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