Record-breaking cableway in Switzerland

The futuristic bubble-tram begins its route in the town of Schwyz in the canton of the same name and ends on the Stoos plateau. It consists of four rotating cabins, which, depending on the slope, compensate for the steepness of the route traveled. And the steepness is impressive at 110% (47.7º)! The 1,720-meter-long route is located 1,300 m a.s.l., and the railroad overcomes an elevation difference of 743 meters. The speed of the railroad is as high as 10 m/s, and each cabin is able to accommodate 34 passengers (that is, a total of 136 people). The upper station of the railroad is located in the small ski resort of Stoos, from which we will ascend to a maximum altitude of 1,935 m a.s.l. by means of several lifts.

The project had been planned for 14 years and replaced the old one that had been in operation since 1933. During the design work, many engineering difficulties were encountered, so that as many as 15 different variants of the impressive structure were considered. The funicular system was supplied by Austrian-Swiss giant Doppelmayr-Garaventa Group.

The investment is estimated at CHF 52 million (about €44.6 million), and the repeatedly stalled construction took more than four years. The previous record of 106% gradient belonged to the Gelmerbahn Railway, also in Switzerland (Bern), and the closest next "competitor" is the East Hill Cliff Railway in England with a gradient of 78%.

This is another impressive investment in Switzerland. Next season (2018/2019), the world's highest 3-S cable car, under construction for 2 years, is scheduled to open in Zermatt.