It turns out all of those trips to Breckenridge have inspired Texans to build some gondolas. WFAA reports that the Regional Transportation Council (RTC) is taking applications from Texas cities to install gondolas. Cities have until April 10th to send in a proposal for a gondola. So far, the city of Plano is the most interested in adding one.
For those who don’t know much about the city of Plano (i.e., myself), here’s a quick primer. Over 285,000 people live there, and it’s the main suburban city in the Dallas-Fort Worth megaplex. Many major companies call the city home, including J.C. Penny and Frito-Lay. In spite of having a transit system, they still deal with a lot of traffic congestion.
Plano is working with Swyft Cities, which constructs “20th-century gondolas with 21st-century technology.” The cabins would fit 3-4 people, with wheelchair-accessible cabins fitting up to six indivduals. The gondolas would connect the Shops At Legacy, Legacy West, and the Legacy Town Center.
There is a difference between this type of gondola and the ones at ski resorts in that the cabin moves through the cable, rather than the cable moving with the gondola. You will use an app that allows you to pick where to stop on the route. So far, two prototypes have been built in New Zealand and California.
The video from WFAA is below.
Image/Video Credits: Swyft Cities, WFAA
