Laax, June 13, 2021. With a clear decision in today's referendum on Sunday, June 13, 2021, the people of Flims have voted in favor of the partial revision of the zoning plan and the partial revision of the general development plan for the construction of a new mountain railway in Flims. This clears another hurdle for the development of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Tectonic Arena Sardona.
After the voters of Flims approved a project loan of CHF 850,000 on September 13, 2015and, on May 19, 2019, a contribution of CHF 20 million to the planned total costs of developing the UNESCO World Heritage Site Tektonikarena Sadrona, another hurdle was cleared this Sunday, June 13, 2021, with a clear vote of 1,112 YES to 155 NO. June 13, 2021. "We are on the home stretch. However, until we can break ground for the first construction phase, we must continue to 'stay relaxed, but not let up,'" said Reto Gurtner, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Weisse Arena Group.
new route included
The adjustments to the general development plan for the municipality of Flims include the inclusion of the new gondola lift route. "After more than 15 years and numerous ideas and concepts, I am very pleased that we have found the optimal solution together with the municipality of Flims, which I support 100%," says Gurtner about the route selection. This runs from Flims via Foppa and Startgels to the Segnes hut. From there, the line leads to Nagens Sura on one side and Ils Cugns on the other. This will replace the existing Flims–Foppa chairlift and the Startgels–Grauberg cable car. The Foppa–Naraus chairlift will be dismantled without replacement.
Flagship tourism project with new technology
The plan is to build a detachable cable car with 10-person gondolas and a maximum capacity of 1,500 people per hour between Flims and Nagens Sura, and 1,000 people per hour between the Segnes hut and Ils Cugns. Bartholet Maschinenbau AG, headquartered in Flums, was commissioned to plan and build this flagship tourism project. The technology was developed specifically for this project: the cable car will be fully automated and operated on demand. Before departure, guests select their destination, which their gondola then travels to fully automatically. The gondolas also only operate on demand and do not rotate on the tow rope as is usually the case. This concept not only significantly reduces energy consumption, but also lowers operating and maintenance costs.
First stage to be completed in 2022
The cable car will be built in two stages: the four sections Flims – Foppa – Startgels – Segneshütte – Nagens Sura are to be completed in 2022. In addition, the existing chairlifts Flims – Foppa and Foppa – Naraus as well as the Startgels – Grauberg cable car will be dismantled. In the second stage, the Segneshütte – Ils Cugns section will be built by 2023, followed by the UNESCO visitor center in Ils Cugns.