TYPES OF ROPEWAYS

This icon will function as an information point, it will provide a general overview of types of ropeways. Depending on
the area requirements both in urban and winter sports areas different types of installations are needed to satisfy
individual needs.
If you wish to know more about one or more product by LEITNER ropeways, do not hesitate to click on the icon
"products" on the main bar or directly chose the link below each product of interest.
Fixed grip installations
Fixed grip installations are the types of ropeways whose grip is permanently fixed and tight on the rope and is not
taken off the rope in the station.

Fixed grip

Surface Lifts
Surface lifts are products of decades of experience seeing a lot of installations worldwide. They can operate in almost
any weather condition and are characterized by low maintenance cost. They are popular especially in smaller ski
resorts for short and flat slopes. In major and small ski resorts they are mainly used for beginner areas with ski
schools.

Going up worldwide. With tried and tested surface lifts by LEITNER ropeways.

Surface lift with single hanger

Surface lift with double hanger

Fixed Grip Chairlifts

Fixed grip chairlift are also renowned for their decade of experience and they are often chosen for their enviable
robust engineering, their life operations in combination with relatively convenient investment costs. Today fixed grip
chairlifts are mainly available for 2 and 4 passengers.
LEITNER ropeways: Fixed grip chairlifts. The modern classic.

2-seater chairlift with fixed grip

4-seater chairlift with fixed grip

Pulsed Gondola ropeways

Pulsed gondola ropeways are also fixed-grip installations. They operate with one or more sets of vehicles lined up
one after another. As the sets pass through the stations the rope speed immediately slows. Pulsed Gondola
ropeways operate in both summer and winter season and because of their limited transport capacity they are suitable
for short ropeways.
Well tried and economic pulsed gondola ropeways by LEITNER ropeways.

Pulsed gondola with fixed grip

GFR8 Eyp - Piyerloti

Detachable installations
Detachable installations are characterized by the possibility of detaching the vehicles in the stations from the rope.
This enables a higher speed on the line, a lower speed in the station and makes the boarding and de-boarding more
comfortable for the passengers. According to this, a significantly higher transport capacity as well as more comfort
for the passenger can be achieved. Detachable installations are on the market since the 80s and are considered to
be the state of the art technology of modern ropeway systems.

Monocable detachable grip

Tricable detachable grip

Detachable Chairlift
Detachable chairlift are representing the most popular, comfortable and fastest transport system for winter sports
enthusiasts. The bubbles protect skiers against any weather condition. They can be taken down at any time during
the drive. Moreover they are available in different colors to offer a pleasant view even in bad weather conditions. In
cold temperatures the seat heating warms the bench to offer a more comfortable ride.
LEITNER ropeways: Success through continuous evolution.

6-seater chairlift with bubble

8-seater chairlift with blue bubble

Monocable Detachable Gondola Lifts

Monocable detachable gondola have one rope acting as carrying and hauling rope at the same time. The cabins are
available in different designs such as rectangular and round designs always having an aluminum structure frame. The
large windows are offering the passenger a panoramic view. They are also available with seat heating. The cabins of
this type of installation are transporting up to 10 passengers per cabin. In addition to classic winter sports tourism,
ropeways are increasingly in demand for alternative purposes such as transport to tourist sights, city commuting, and
as attractions themselves.
Gondola lifts by LEITNER ropeways.

8-passenger gondola lift - winter sports

8-passenger gondola lift - urban

Telemix: combined detachable chairlift and gondola lift

Telemix is the name given to what today is the combination of two vehicle types in one installation system - chairs
and gondolas. This type of installation combines the advantages of both ropeway systems. Experienced skiers may
prefer the comfortable chairs as they dont have to take off their skis. On the other hand beginners, children or nonskiers enjoy the gondolas.
LEITNER ropeways Telemix: Combined detachable chairlift and gondola lift.

Telemix 6-8

Telemix 8-8

Bicable (2S) & Tricable (3S) Gondola lifts

These detachable ropeway systems take their names from the number of their ropes. A bicable gondola lift has a
carrying and a hauling rope. A tricable gondola lift has two carrying ropes and one hauling rope. 3S installations can
achieve a transport capacity of over 5,000 passengers per hour and a speed up to 7 m/s so they are able to
transport many satisfied passengers. These systems are an attractive alternative for urban transportation because of
their low energy consumption, high transport capacities, highest standard of operating safety, the possibility of an
extremely wide span between towers and they perform extremely well in windy conditions - even at high wind speeds
of over 100 km/h.
LEITNER ropeways 2S and 3S gondola lifts - economical solution for demanding terrains.

Bicable gondola lift

tricable gondola lift

Aerial tramway
Aerial tramways are very attractive ropeway systems. They are ideal for extremely steep terrain, high levels of
availability and good stability in wind. Aerial tramways have one or two carriers running to and fro either on one
carrying hauling rope or on one or two track ropes, with a haul rope providing the traction. The biggest cabins for
aerial tramways can accommodate up to 200 people.
Areal tramways by LEITNER ropeways

Aerial tramways

Systems on rails
Funiculars
Funiculars run on tracks and are mainly used to overcome altitude differences. Car capacity varies as individual cars
can be combined to form train sets. Funiculars are the fastest ropeway system: with line speeds of up to 14 m/s and
high levels of availability they are often used as public transportation means in cities.

Safe, reliable, fast and eco-friendly - LEITNER ropeways funiculars

IF 130

IF 100

Minimetro: Automatic people mover

The cable-drawn automatic people mover is a detachable ropeway system on rails for both short and medium
distance operations. It is perfectly suitable for the public transportation for example as connections to airports, in
towns and small cities for different transit systems like park and ride or busy locations like shopping malls. This
system offers outstanding flexibility for the integration within the already existing urban infrastructure.
LEITNER ropeways cableway systems for public transport in urban and touristic centers.

MiniMetro Frankfurt

MiniMetro Perugia

Inclined elevators
Inclined elevators employ the same basic technology as vertical elevators. They are the perfect system for straight
lines over short distances. These systems are fully automatic and there is no need for operating personnel.
LEITNER ropeways inclined elevators.

Inclined funicular

Introduction
The kit covers the cable lifts: you have already discussed the title. Indeed there appears the cable
word. Almost a truism so obviously implicit. The cable is so inseparable from the lift that we often forget to talk
(perhaps unlike the Italians who say impianti di risalita a warp, but often still only impianti!). Look to convince you
of the journals: you will have all the details on the stations, pliers, towers, vehicles, but often very little
information about the body that moves these!
And yet there is a critical organ (an abrupt break in operating cable, often caused by a plane, always has dramatic
consequences) and complex: it consists of a core (often referred to as "compact" Now, after being in textiles) and
strands (steel), trained themselves to son.
We will immediately remove cases of RMs do not engage cables:

Funiculars rack, which derive from the railway. They are very rare in winter sports resorts (none in France
it seems). They are listed here only for memory.

Carpets cranes, including essort is recent, and which prove interesting for beginners and children because
their use is obvious (it does not require learning, instead of Tk for example). Their use is limited to
relatively short distances of vertical drop (and slopes) not too pronounced.

Forget them afterwards: they represent only a small proportion of mountain plants.
But however underline some similarities with the railway: we speak in the way on, stations, vehicles, trains.
The RMs cable (s) may include one or more cables. The cables are divided into 3 categories:

There is talk of running cable when the cable is only used to draw the vehicles.

The suspension cable borne vehicles, it does not take part in their displacement.

When a cable has these two functions simultaneously, the said cable is carrying-hauling.

The cables do not have the same design in terms of their use.
The RMs can use these functions for different cables. They may include one or more cables of each type.
On this basis, I distinguish three broad categories of RMs:

1.

Those without using a tractor cable (usually there is indeed only one cable).

2.

Those employing one or more cable (s) holder (s) -tracteur (s): they are called single-cable. There is
usually no more than 2 cables.

3.

Those employing one or more cables tractors with one or more carrier cables. We distinguish in particular
4 large subfamilies:
1.

The bicable: a carrier cable, a traction cable,

2.

The tricbles 2 Cable carriers, tractors cable.

3.

The tricbles 2 cables tractors, carrier cable.

4.

The quadricbles (rare): 2 Cable carriers, tractors 2 cables.

The first cable cars were built in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries in Europe and Japan for military
purposes. But their actual development, mines and forests had to wait mastery of drawing (cold drawing metal
son) in the middle of the nineteenth century. Cables gear of all types are truly popular until 1945, although some
previous achievements to be bold (funicular Lyon in 1868, the cable Wetterhorn in 1908 Glacier in Chamonix in
1927 (

(Photo www.aiguilledumidi.net )) and the Brevent 1932).

Passenger gear moved by cables cover a range of uses from urban transport on short to gear for tourism, sports
or mixed form the backbone of the equipment of our mountains.

Funicular consist of two wagons or two trains of carriages rolling on a track and connected by a cable
which passes over a drive pulley located in one of the end stations. When one of them goes up the other
goes down. Most cable cars run on a single track, which only a mid-term portion is doubled to allow
crossings; others operate on two parallel tracks as the Montmartre funicular in Paris (
).
The latest can take more than 300 people at 35 km / hour like the Grande Motte in Tignes (
). There
are also other characteristics such as subglacial funiculars, like Les Deux Alpes (
(Photowww.poma.net )).

The cable cars back and forth have two closed vehicles, which can be large capacity (160 people in
Courchevel (
) And Vaujany or even 200 as the Vanoise Express linking La Plagne and Les Arcs (
(Photo www.poma.net ).)), suspended, each with a carriage provided with rollers in one or more strong
section of the carrying cables (up to 75 mm diameter). They are moved alternately in one direction then
the other by one or more traction cables forming one or more loops stretched between the end
pulleys. The world record of range has long belonged to the cable car to the Aiguille du Midi in Chamonix
(2869 m in a range for the second section) (
).
The car is traveling up to more than 12.5 m / s. Flying height is not limited. The suspension cable allows
to bear the weight of the car and, due to the carriage by its smooth, rolling. The tractor cables, he pulls
the cab.

The cable cars, unlike the two previous types of gear are devices continuous motion. Cabins, low
capacity (from 4 to 16 people), are both supported and hauled through a single cable forming a closed
loop driven with a constant speed (up to 6 m / s). They are connected to this cable by detachable
fasteners, vehicles are decoupled in the departure and arrival areas where they run on channels provided
for this purpose. Embarkation and disembarkation and perform at very low speed and Rent skis. A
launching device is intended to gradually bring each cabin at the speed of the cable and avoid shock when
mating. The flow of modern appliances, fully automated, can reach 3000 people per hour in each
direction. Flying height is limited to 25 m (30 m for flights over short depressions).
Technology now allows the construction of hybrid devices between Cable and Gondolas.
The first of its kind was the DMC (Serre-Chevalier in 1984 (
)). The cabins are more important than a
Cableway (20 to 30), the unit has 2 supporting cables / tractors connected to the cabin by detachable
fasteners like gondolas. This combination provides a substantial resistance to the wind (by the presence
of two wires instead of one which prevents oscillation), a significant rollover capacity and high
throughput.
Later (1990) appeared the Funitels (Val-Thorens, Pclet Funitel (
)). They resume the same mode as
the DMC, but have a greater distance between the two cables and a lower height hanger (part between
the roof of the cabin and the clamp), which allows wind resistance yet better. But there are also other
devices combining detachable grips and the presence of several cables.
2 carrier / hauling ropes, we went to 2 supporting cables and 1 tractor cables. This provision allows for
greater spans between towers and thus to reduce their number. These devices also offer a high rate by
the presence of 30 people cabins in continuous movement in the cable, made possible by the presence of
these three cables. This technology is called colloquially 3S (3S for 3 cables).There is one single copy in
France, Val d'Isre: 3S Olympique (
(Photo www.doppelmayr.com )).
This principle has also been transposed to cable cars, but with two cables, one carrier and one tractor, as
on conventional cablecar. The cabins are the same type as for a traditional gondola (maximum 16 places)
but the number may be increased due to the presence of 2 cables. The flow rate is therefore increased by
(4000 p / h for example). Similarly, the wind resistance is better than on a traditional gondola. This
system is called the 2S (for 2 cables).

Chairlifts have open seating or closed by a shell from one to eight seats (first 8 places in France in 2000:
Mribel (
) And Flaine (
(Photo www.grand-massif.net ))).
Embarkation and disembarkation are skis. The seats are connected to the carrying-hauling cable by a
disengageable attachment, as in the gondola, or by a fixed clamp, and, in this case, the loading and
unloading are carried on. The flow of a detachable quad chairlift reached 2,400 people per hour (rarely
more).
At a time when all components are standardized devices now are emerging hybrid devices combining
detachable seats and cabins on the same device. Tlmix call at Poma or Doppelmayr Combi, these
facilities allow to enjoy the benefits of detachable chairlifts (comfort, not heaving skis) and the cable
cars (comfort in bad weather and transport children safely).

The ski lift: vehicles are distributed on the line, the skier seizes downstream station, lets pull and release
the vehicle upstream station. The ski lift is mainly divided into 2 groups:
- The TK low cable type rope tow, tow rope tow rope or other: there is no vehicle, the skier takes a full
hand driven rope. Appreciated by beginners, is generalized to spend benches, the RM should be limited to
short distances (because often there is no support except the rope tow rope) of dnivelles (and slopes)
low ( otherwise it is difficult to stay aggrip rope because the skier pulls its weight).
- The high Tk cable, which itself includes two subfamilies, depending on the type of vehicle:
- TK pole (or hanger) requires a relatively low line including the compression stroke lot of towers and
support-compression. Rails can be fixed on the cable or disengageable. The latter type is the most
widespread in France RM (rather, it is almost nonexistent abroad). This RM does not allow large variations
in snow depth. For cons, the Tk easily detachable boom allows for lines with angles.
- TK reels, for which the vehicle is either a saddle (1 place) a bow (2 places). The line is highest with the
rope reel, whereby almost as support towers are used (except downstream station exit where a
compression pylon is necessary). It is very hard to achieve angles online. This is the most common type of

TK in the world (except in France, but we feel a renewed interest in recent years). It accepts large
variations in snow depth. With the hardiness of the line, this makes it the preferred RM glacier.