Wings of Tatev
Wings of Tatev | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Status | Operational |
Character | Aerial tramway |
Location | Syunik Province, Armenia |
Termini |
Halidzor Tatev village / monastery |
No. of stations | 2 |
Open | 16 October 2010 |
Technical features | |
Line length | 5.7 km (3.5 mi) |
Operating speed | 37 km/h (23 mph) |
Wings of Tatev (Armenian: Տաթևի թևեր Tatevi tever) is a 5.7 km (3.5 mi) cableway between Halidzor and the Tatev monastery in Armenia. It is the longest reversible aerial tramway built in only one section, and holds the record for Longest non-stop double track cable car.[1] Construction was finished on 16 October 2010.
Gathered in the country's southern mountains near the border with Iran, guests including president Serzh Sarkisian and the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Karekin II, took part as the cable car link launched its first official voyage over the Vorotan River Gorge. The link allows year-round access to Armenia's 9th-century Tatev monastery complex, one of the country's most important religious centres and a major tourist attraction. The reversible cable car line cost $18 million with much of the funding coming from private donations, according to the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, which oversaw the project. It runs from the village of Halidzor near a highway connecting the Armenian capital Yerevan to the village of Tatev, within walking distance of the monastery.
The cable car travels at a speed of 37 km (23 mi) per hour and a one-way journey takes 10 minutes. At its highest point over the gorge, the car travels 320 m (1,050 ft) above ground level.
It has two cabins, each capable of carrying up to 25 passengers. Local residents from 9 surrounding villages will be able to ride the cable car for 500 Armenian drams ($1.20) one-way and 1000 Armenian drams ($2.40) round-trip, while others will have to pay 4,000 Armenian drams ($9.80) for round-trip ticket and 3,000 Armenian drams ($7.30) for one-way ticket. On 23 October 2010 it was officially recorded by Guinness World Records as the world's longest non-stop double track cable car.
Gallery
- The tram
- View from the tram
- Road to the main buildings and lower station in Halidzor
- Main building (administration, restaurant, ticket office)
- Lower station "Halidzor"
- Upper station "Tatev"
- A billboard advertising the tramway near Goris
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wings of Tatev. |
References
- ↑ "Longest non-stop double track cable car". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- "Longest cable car links Armenian monastery". Euronews. 2010-10-19. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- "Armenia opens aerial tramway aspiring to be named the world's longest". Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review. 2010-10-18. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- "World's longest cable car line opens to Armenia". The Jakarta Globe. 2010-10-16. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- "World Longest Tramway?". CNN. 2010-09-06. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
- Wings of Tatev in Guinness Book of Records (video) | Armenia News - NEWS.am
Coordinates: 39°24′59″N 46°17′49″E / 39.41639°N 46.29694°E