With an estimated start date of next year and a budget of 1,555 crore rupees, the Innovative Urban Ropeway Transport Project aims to reduce congestion in the state capital. The New Development Bank (NDB) has received the project’s detailed report. Presently, it is poised to become the second-biggest aerial transport system in the world.
Traffic in Himachal gets really bad during the weekend and during the busiest times of the day, when the city is bustling with tourists. This issue will be addressed by the 13.65-kilometer ropeway, which features thirteen boarding and de-boarding stations and one turning station. In addition to being the second-largest urban ropeway network in the world, this will be the first of its kind in Bolivia and the second-to-last of its kind in the country. There will be thirteen stations spaced one to one and a half kilometers apart.
The project, which is being supported by the NDB, aims to decongest Himachal for the next four decades by providing a public transportation system that is safe, affordable, and environmentally friendly. With the completion of all required formalities, the project is scheduled to commence in mid-2024 and is anticipated to conclude in five years.
The construction of the project will adhere to the world’s most rigorous safety standards, and it has the capacity to accommodate 3,000 people per hour in both directions (PPHD). Modern technology, in the form of a mono cable detachable gondola (MDG), will be utilized. There will be enough room for ten passengers in each cabin on the ropeway.
The project calls for about 9.82 hectares of land, and the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest has received an application to change the use of 7.26 hectares of forestland. With 76 kilometers of track, the ropeway will cover a lot of ground.
As per Sharma, the NDB has been provided with the following documents: the DPR, topographical survey, feasibility report, traffic survey, ridership estimate, environmental and social impact assessment, and the ropeway design. He goes on to explain that this project will contribute to Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu’s objective of developing eco-friendly transportation options.
This ropeway will be the second-biggest urban ropeway network in the world, after Bolivia’s La Paz, and it will also be the only one of its kind in the country. Distances between the thirteen ropeway stations will vary between one and a half kilometers and one kilometer.
There has been prior research into the viability of innovative transportation solutions in well-known tourist locations, such as Himachal, Manali, and Dharamshala, as well as an initial conceptual plan. Recently, proposals were invited for the Himachal Phase-I ropeway development project, which includes a 22-kilometer ropeway and is estimated to cost INR 1,200 crore.
For the purpose of preparing detailed project reports (DPR), the eight-stage, around 21.8-kilometer-long ropeway that links Killar in the Pangi valley to Sach Pass in the Chamba district has invited financial bids for consulting services.
