New Merritts Gondola Construction Update
Posted on 7 Feb, 2020
Construction of Australia’s only alpine Gondola is well underway and on target for completion ahead of the upcoming 2020 winter snow season at Thredbo Resort. This exciting development will see the Merritts double chairlift replaced with a high speed, eight-person Gondola that will quadruple the capacity of the previous lift and further enhance the award-winning Thredbo experience.
In addition to the Gondola, a fully automated snowmaking system on the popular ‘Dream Run’ is being installed as well as other slope works ahead of the upcoming winter. This development will allow more reliable access to Friday Flat and the mid-station of the new Merritts Gondola as well as better access to a wide variety of intermediate and advanced tree runs.
Stage One of Thredbo’s carparking expansion plan is also on schedule for completion prior to winter 2020. This addition will see an additional carparking lot at Friday Flat, providing enhanced access for Thredbo’s day trip market.
Construction on the immense Merritts Gondola project is being carried out by the company Doppelmayr and will run until May 2020. The Gondola cabins, which were made by CWA in Olten, Switzerland have arrived in the resort, and other specialised equipment has been in production since March 2019 in Wolfurt, Austria.
The scale of the project will see over 45 containers of equipment, 20 truckloads of reinforcing and steel, and 150 truckloads of concrete delivered to Thredbo. Over 170 people will be directly and indirectly involved in the construction process with approximately 25-30 people working on-site on the project.
Construction that has been completed to date includes the demolition of the existing Merritts Chairlift towers and stations, excavation and foundation work at the bottom, mid and top station locations before installation of everything from the carrier parking sheds to the towers and stations themselves.
Once completed the new Gondola will span over 1.3 kilometres, rise 298 vertical metres, and be able to lift 2,000 people per hour. Travel time on the Gondola from Thredbo Village to the Cruiser area will be approximately six minutes, saving 15 minutes on current times and carrying up to eight people per cabin in comfort and full protection from the weather.
To celebrate these exciting developments including the Merritts Gondola, Thredbo is running a #MyGondola Snap & Win promotion until March 31 2020. Guests simply snap a photo of their favourite Thredbo moment and post it on Instagram with #MyGondola and tag @thredboresort for their chance for their photo to feature inside a Gondola cabin. The grand prize winner will receive a trip to Thredbo including three nights’ accommodation, a three-day lift pass and rental during winter 2020. Click here to find out more!
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Thredbo sits on the traditional land of the Monero – Ngarigo people who have looked after this land, water and community for over 60,000 years. We thank them for all they have done and continue to do to look after their country, a special place which we all love and respect.
