Aerial Tramways and Gondolas of the World
Inspired by this week's announcement of a possible gondola link to Governor's Island between Manhattan and Brooklyn, here is a list of significant aerial transit systems of the (mostly) urban world:
Rio de Janeiro
Rio actually has two systems, one linked the city to the hill of Morro de Urca, and another linking the hill to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain. The higher of the two was featured in the James Bond flick Moonraker.
New York City, Roosevelt Island
This is currently one of the few aerial tramways used for the purposes of commuting, connecting Roosevelt Island in the East River to midtown Manhattan. Also starred in Spider-Man.
Merida, Venezuela
This cable car boasts the world's longest track at 7.77(!) miles.
Singapore Cable Car
This was the first cable car in the world to span a harbor, and I'm not sure if that is so great. However, it did star in a 1976 episode of Hawaii Five-O, which is quite great indeed. Also notable for the 1983 Cable Car Tragedy, where 7 passengers were killed when the cable car was hit by a Panamanian oil rig and consequently fell to the sea.
Switzerland
Switzerland may just have the most cable cars per capita, thanks to the Alps and an industrious population of skiers. The tramway that climbs Schilthorn Mountain can be seen in the James Bond movie On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
While the difference between aerial tramways, gondolas, and cable cars is beyond me, I hope this brief list inspires you to go explore the world from the air, whether you're James Bond, Spider Man, or Detective Steve McGarrett.
"Big Ideas for Governors I." [NYT]
List of Aerial Tramways [Wikipedia]
Previously: Copacabana Palace: Faded Glory?, Crazy Horse Singapore, Who Cut the Cheese?
