Gerlitzen installs first gondola on new cable car

Workers have lifted the first gondola onto the new cable of the Kanzelbahn cable car on the Gerlitzen mountain, ORF reported. Construction of the 10-person gondola lift, which will run from the middle station to the summit plateau, began in spring, and about two-thirds of the work is now complete.

The new cable was installed on the Monday of the previous week. After four months of construction, specialists lifted the first gondola onto it on Wednesday to make the initial adjustments at the stations. The remaining gondolas are scheduled to be attached directly at the cable-car station next week, operations manager Thomas Rupitsch said.

Martin Rauter, authorised signatory of Gerlitzen Kanzelbahn, said the new lift would eliminate waiting times in summer and winter. It will be barrier-free and able to carry prams and bicycles. The enclosed gondolas will also allow children to be transported safely, he said.

The lift’s capacity will double to 4,000 people an hour. The stations will use about 60 to 70 sensors to monitor each gondola’s position, its departure and whether its clamp is correctly closed and attached to the cable, Rupitsch said.

Each gondola weighs about 1.5 tonnes when fully loaded, while the system is designed to withstand five to six times that load. The project also includes 14 newly built support towers with concrete foundations, as well as a new mountain station.

Gerlitzen Kanzelbahn is investing 22 million euros in the replacement of Kanzelbahn II. Nineteen companies are involved, with more than 70 workers employed at times. The new lift is expected to carry passengers to the mountain station at 1,900 metres above sea level in a maximum of six minutes. Operations are scheduled to begin on October 22.