Paris is building a gondola line as part of public transit. Should Toronto?

Ever see a neat project in another city and wonder: could we do it here? Should we? We have too, and as part of an ongoing series we’ll be taking ideas from around the world and running them through the lens of Toronto.

In 2004, Medellín, Colombia, introduced “Metrocable” — considered to be the world’s first urban gondola line for public transit use. In the nearly two decades since, cable car public transit systems have proliferated across Latin America.

No longer were cable cars a recreational attraction found at tourist sites or ski resorts. In Latin American cities such as La Paz, Bolivia, as well as Caracas, Venezuela, and Bogotá, Colombia, gondolas have become a popular means of transporting riders across the region’s hilly terrain.

Municipalities outside of Latin America are moving forward with cable car public transit too. In early February, Paris approved its first gondola line, slated to open in 2025. The 4.5-kilometre aerial tramway will be integrated with the existing transit system and will connect five stations in just 17 minutes.

Toronto has seen two opposing problems emerge in terms of public transportation in the last few years — too many people for its existing infrastructure during pre-pandemic times, and too few since the onset of COVID-19. Could a gondola change its fortunes?

It wouldn’t be the first Canadian city to add one. In January, Burnaby, BC, voted in favor of a gondola line that would connect Simon Fraser University, located on Burnaby Mountain, with a SkyTrain station below. The project, which does not yet have a slated opening date, would provide faster and more reliable service than the existing bus route, according to transit authority TransLink.

Toronto has toyed with the idea of ​​a cable car line in recent years. In the mid-2010s, a one-kilometre gondola line, albeit not integrated with the public transit system, was proposed as a means to connect the Danforth with Evergreen Brick Works. That transit project has yet to come to fruition.

And in 2017, an underground transit line using cable car technology was one of three options proposed to link Union Station and Queens Quay. However, city council ended up voting to extend the new East Bayfront Light Rail Transit to Union Station rather than using a cable car connection.

Though Toronto does not currently have a cable car line, either for recreation or for public transit use, it did have one for 28 years. The 701-meter Alpine Way gondola line was one of the marquee attractions at the Canadian National Exhibition. It carried millions of people between 1966 and 1994 but was ultimately torn down to make way for what is now the Enercare Centre.

Steven Dale, principal planner at the cable transit division of engineering firm SCJ Alliance, says gondolas haven’t taken hold in Toronto likely due to poor public perception.

“Despite the fact that there are close to 100 kilometers of public transit cable cars in Latin America, there’s still a mistaken belief that these are novelty rides — that they are ski lifts and not real public transit,” he said.

Dale highlights that the biggest advantage gondolas have over other modes of public transit — such as subways, streetcars and buses — is wait times. Gondolas can reduce wait times between vehicles to just 11 seconds due to the proximity of the cars on the line, he said.

According to a 2016 service standards survey, TTC customers are most likely to cite vehicle wait times as the most important factor they consider when planning a trip.

“It’s the single biggest factor that determines whether or not someone chooses to use transit versus a private automobile,” said Dale.

He also noted that gondola lines can be constructed “relatively quickly” and are cheaper to implement. After approvals have been issued and financing is in place, Dale said a basic cable car line can be completed in one year and a more complex system can be finished in two years — “which is light years faster than existing fixed link modes (like subways ).”

Matti Siemiatycki, an associate professor at the University of Toronto’s department of geography and planning, says that although Toronto could implement a cable car line, it doesn’t mean the city should, noting that there are far more pressing public transit issues that need to be addressed.

“It doesn’t seem to me a gondola or cable car line should be the highest priority when we have bus routes that desperately need more service, a huge budget shortfall and major transit projects that are already in the process of being planned,” he said. “Adding cable car wouldn’t be at the top of my list, but it’s definitely an idea that’s catching attention in different places.”

Siemiatycki also stresses that cable cars may not be the right solution to solve Toronto’s transit problems, highlighting that gondola technology is primarily used in cities with topographies that make it difficult to implement other modes of transport.

“Topography is not the barrier in our city,” he said. “In Toronto, it’s a solution in search of a problem. The question is, what exact problem is being identified that cable cars solve better than all of the other alternatives that we’ve looked at and that would necessitate us presenting cable cars as the priority.”

Though it’s unlikely Toronto will ever build a cable car transit system comparable to those in Latin American cities, there may be some light at the end of the rope for gondola enthusiasts.

Metrolinx says it’s exploring a gondola line as one of its last-mile solutions to connect the Ontario Line’s Exhibition Stadium with the soon-to-be revitalized Ontario Place. Other options being considered include a shuttle service and a people mover.