The Peak 2 Peak Gondola is a tricable gondola lift at Whistler Blackcomb Resort in Whistler, British Columbia, linking Whistler Mountain’s Roundhouse Lodge with Blackcomb Mountain’s Rendezvous Lodge. It is the first lift to join the two side-by-side mountains. It held the world record for the longest free span between ropeway towers—3.03 kilometers until 2017 when the Eibsee Cable Car exceeded it by 189m. It is still the highest point above the ground—436 meters.
The Peak 2 Peak Gondola was built by the Doppelmayr Garaventa Group in 2007 and 2008 at a cost of CDN$51 million. The Peak 2 Peak Gondola is the first Doppelmayr “3S” tri-cable lift in North America; there are four similar but smaller lifts in Europe which were built in 1991, 1994, 2002, 2004, and 2010 in Switzerland, Austria, France and Germany. Whistler-Blackcomb has touted the gondola as an iconic attraction and uses it to transport skiers in the winter months as well as sightseers year-round.
The Peak 2 Peak Gondola terminal buildings are two of the largest lift terminals in the world. To create the concrete footings, platforms, masts, and columns, 4,000 cubic meters of concrete had to be trucked and helicoptered up the mountains. The 1,100 m2 Whistler terminal, which houses the drive motors and backup engines in an underground vault is 26 meters wide and 42 meters long and has 228 tons of steel. The 1,300 m2 Blackcomb Terminal is 26 meters wide and 48 meters long and contains 279 tons of steel. The Blackcomb terminal can house 15 cabins, the Whistler terminal has 13 cabins in a cabin parking area when the system is not in use.
There are four intermediate towers, two on Whistler Mountain and two on Blackcomb Mountain that support the cables, which range in height from 30 to 65 meters. Combined, they contain 400 metric tons of steel.
The 28 CWA-manufactured gondola cabins hold 28 people each, with 22 seated and 6 standing. Twenty-six of the cabins are painted red and white, while the remaining two are painted blue, and have glass floors.
According to Wikipedia
