Paris To Install Airborne Gondola Line Connecting The City To Suburbs
Image via Ile-de-France Mobilities
In a matter of only three years, Paris’ public transport network will truly reach new heights as it expands into the sky. The city has green-lighted plans to build a €132 million (US$149 million) electric-powered aerial gondola system to connect residents of outlying suburbs to the city center.
When Cable A, the new 4.5-kilometer (2.8-mile) line, opens in 2025, it should improve accessibility to schools, offices, and medical centers for some 11,000 people living in hard-to-reach but thickly populated areas.
Image via Ile-de-France Mobilities
The route will begin at the Villeneuve-Saint-Georges suburbs and take passengers to the Créteil Pointe du Lac station on Paris’ Metro line eight, conveniently transporting them to the city’s prime metro network.
Image via Ile-de-France Mobilities
The airborne gondolas won’t just bless travelers with a bird’s-eye view ahead of or after a busy day at work, but unlike most options for public transportation, they’re also eco-friendly and can assimilate right into an existing transit network.
Image via Ile-de-France Mobilities
Image via Ile-de-France Mobilities
It’s worth pointing out that the electric cable cars aren’t meant to be the main mode of transportation for people living in less-connected neighborhoods. Rather, they’ll be the link to the city’s more accessible trains and trams, making their daily travels less painful.
All this will be achieved without leaving such a huge dent on taxpayers’ wallets. Building the mid-air network—as opposed to tunnels, bridges, and railways—eliminates the need to remap an existing network, which would understandably require exhaustive costs, labor, and time.
Image via Ile-de-France Mobilities
And since there won’t be a need to bulldoze over hilly landscapes, the natural charm of rural neighborhoods will be retained. The only noticeable difference is a speedier trip to work and other essential locations every day.
Image via Ile-de-France Mobilities
[via Yanko Design and Bloomberg, images via Ile-de-France Mobilities]
