Gondolas were a big thing when I was young. Disneyland had one connecting Fantasyland to Tomorrowland, passing through a gap in the Matterhorn. But difficult to maintain and subject to severe safety issues, it was scrapped in the 80s.
The same is the fate of Kyushu Sanko’s Aso gondola. Opened in 1958, the 858 meter long line elevated passengers 108 meters from the parking lot to the peak. However, volcanic activity and earthquakes have severely damaged the infrastructure. It was shut in 2016, and Kumanichi reports on the company’s decision to scrap the cableway completely. It’s the end of an era. - William