Use in mining

Cable cars are sometimes used in mountainous regions to transport ore from a mine high up on the mountain to an ore mill below. Ore cable cars were common at the turn of the century in mines in North and South America.

More than a thousand mining cable cars were built around the world: Spitsbergen, Russia, Alaska, Argentina, New Zealand and Gabon. This experience was repeated with the use of cable cars in the First World War, particularly in the Battles of the Isonzo in Italy. The German firm Bleichert built hundreds of military and freight cable cars, and even built the first tourist cable car in 1913 in Bolzano, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Other companies entered the mining tram business: Otto, Leschen, Breco Ropeways Ltd., Ceretti and Tanfani and Riblet, for example. A major British contributor was Bullivant, who became a member of British Ropes in 1924.[13] The perfection of the cable car through mining led to its application in other fields, such as logging, sugar fields, beet farming, tea plantations, coffee, bean extraction and guano.

Use in the transportation of people

At the beginning of the century, the rise of the middle class and the leisure industry made it possible to invest in machines for tourism. In 1891, a cable car covering a distance of 2.3 kilometers was built in Hong Kong.[14] After Leonardo Torres y Quevedo's pioneering cable car of 1907 on Monte Ulía (San Sebastián, Spain)[15] and the Wetterhorn Ascension (Grindelwald, Switzerland) in 1908,[16][17] others were built to the top of high peaks in the Alps of Austria, Germany and Switzerland. They were much cheaper to build than previous cog railways.

In 1916, after the dismantling of the system on Mount Ulía, Torres y Quevedo designed what is currently the oldest operating cable car in the world: the Spanish Aerocar, in Niagara Falls.

One of the first cable cars was in Chamonix, soon followed by others in Switzerland and Garmisch (Germany). The first cable car in North America was at Cannon Mountain in Franconia (New Hampshire), New Hampshire in 1938. After World War II, installations proliferated in Europe, America, Japan, Canada and South Africa. Many hundreds of installations have sprung up in mountainous and marine areas.

The cable car has evolved again in recent decades: one was built in Costa Rica to transport tourists above a rainforest, while in Portland, Oregon, another was built to transport travelers. Today, the mining role of cable cars has diminished, although some still operate, and the movement of people remains an important role for the device.

Many cable cars were built by Von Roll Ltd. of Switzerland, which has since been acquired by the Austrian elevator manufacturer Doppelmayr. Other German, Swiss and Austrian firms played an important role in the cable car business: Bleichert, Heckel, Pohlig, PHB (Pohlig-Heckel-Bleichert), Garaventa and Waagner-Biró. There are now three groups that dominate the global market: Doppelmayr Garaventa Group, Leitner Group and Poma, the last two being owned by a single person.

Some have their own propulsion, as on the Lasso Mule or the Josef Mountain Cable Car near Merano, Italy.

Use in mining

Cable cars are sometimes used in mountainous regions to transport ore from a mine high up on the mountain to an ore mill below. Ore cable cars were common at the turn of the century in mines in North and South America.

More than a thousand mining cable cars were built around the world: Spitsbergen, Russia, Alaska, Argentina, New Zealand and Gabon. This experience was repeated with the use of cable cars in the First World War, particularly in the Battles of the Isonzo in Italy. The German firm Bleichert built hundreds of military and freight cable cars, and even built the first tourist cable car in 1913 in Bolzano, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Other companies entered the mining tram business: Otto, Leschen, Breco Ropeways Ltd., Ceretti and Tanfani and Riblet, for example. A major British contributor was Bullivant, who became a member of British Ropes in 1924.[13] The perfection of the cable car through mining led to its application in other fields, such as logging, sugar fields, beet farming, tea plantations, coffee, bean extraction and guano.

Use in the transportation of people

At the beginning of the century, the rise of the middle class and the leisure industry made it possible to invest in machines for tourism. In 1891, a cable car covering a distance of 2.3 kilometers was built in Hong Kong.[14] After Leonardo Torres y Quevedo's pioneering cable car of 1907 on Monte Ulía (San Sebastián, Spain)[15] and the Wetterhorn Ascension (Grindelwald, Switzerland) in 1908,[16][17] others were built to the top of high peaks in the Alps of Austria, Germany and Switzerland. They were much cheaper to build than previous cog railways.

In 1916, after the dismantling of the system on Mount Ulía, Torres y Quevedo designed what is currently the oldest operating cable car in the world: the Spanish Aerocar, in Niagara Falls.

One of the first cable cars was in Chamonix, soon followed by others in Switzerland and Garmisch (Germany). The first cable car in North America was at Cannon Mountain in Franconia (New Hampshire), New Hampshire in 1938. After World War II, installations proliferated in Europe, America, Japan, Canada and South Africa. Many hundreds of installations have sprung up in mountainous and marine areas.

The cable car has evolved again in recent decades: one was built in Costa Rica to transport tourists above a rainforest, while in Portland, Oregon, another was built to transport travelers. Today, the mining role of cable cars has diminished, although some still operate, and the movement of people remains an important role for the device.

Many cable cars were built by Von Roll Ltd. of Switzerland, which has since been acquired by the Austrian elevator manufacturer Doppelmayr. Other German, Swiss and Austrian firms played an important role in the cable car business: Bleichert, Heckel, Pohlig, PHB (Pohlig-Heckel-Bleichert), Garaventa and Waagner-Biró. There are now three groups that dominate the global market: Doppelmayr Garaventa Group, Leitner Group and Poma, the last two being owned by a single person.

Some have their own propulsion, as on the Lasso Mule or the Josef Mountain Cable Car near Merano, Italy.