Cable Car Transport in Austria

Cable car transport is an essential part of the facilities offered for summer tourism and a necessary feature of Austrian winter tourism. In 1992 cable car transport produced a value-added of AS 5.5 billion, approximately as much as streetcar and bus transport. During the past 15 years the number of persons transported by cable cars has increased by an average of 6.3 percent p. a. (summer +1.5 percent, winter +7 percent). Around 90 percent of all transport cases occur during the winter season. The construction of new cable cars has given strong impulses to winter tourism, and has contributed to the development of a strong export-oriented cable car and ski industry in Austria. Winter tourism causes considerable ecological damage to the sensitive habitats in mountain valleys. The direct damages caused by the construction and operation of cable cars and of ski runs are only a minor part of these overall damages.