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Finally, sanity has prevailed and the connection between Astún and Candanchú will be made with only one lift. The initial project talked about placing a chairlift or conveyor belt to bring skiers to the exit terminal of the gondola lift. An uncomfortable system due to the transfer and the almost certain double queue that would have to be made to get on the two lifts.
Earlier this year, the president of the Mancomunidad del Valle del Aragón, Álvaro Salesa, announced in an interview on Radio Jaca SER Pirineos, that the construction of an L-shaped gondola lift was being considered. That is to say, that in a section of its route it would make a 90º turn like the one in Baqueira Beret, for example, where the lift turns to the right from its intermediate station.
The gondola lift will directly connect Candanchú with Astún.
This Sunday the Heraldo de Aragón confirms that the engineering consultancy Idom is working on the approval of a new Project of General Interest of Aragón (PIGA), a necessary step to be taken before the approval of the new Project of General Interest of Aragón.n (PIGA) necessary step to be able to tender the works, and that is already being done thinking of a gondola lift linking Astún and Candanchú in L shape. Last July this PIGA was already approved, but it contemplated two ski lifts for which some things have to be redone.
In this way, the cable car between the two ski resorts will grow to 2.8 kilometers by adding 400 meters more of line, which is the one that runs through the low elevation of Candanchú and replaces the initial idea of putting a fixed clamp chairlift or a belt.
This variation does not mean further delays to the project, which has already been lost for too many months, according to what the Catalan engineering company has assured El Heraldo.
Thus, now the gondola lift that will connect the two ski resorts will leave its lowest elevation at 1,508 meters at Candanchú, while the arrival at Astún has not changed and remains at 2,038 meters above sea level. According to the drafting of the project, some 20 bollards will have to be installed, some of them up to 50 meters high.
The Izas gondola lift will reach a higher altitude in Astún.
- Type: Gondola lift with disengageable cable car
- Departure: 1.508 meters (Candanchú)
- Arrival: 2,038 meters (Astún)
- Length: 2.840 meters
- Bollards: +20
- Seats: 10
- Poetaskis: internal
- Window opening: limited
- Capacity: 2,400 esq./h
- Number of cabins: 60
- Opening: December 2025
- Cost: 22 million euros
It will be complicated to see the first works this summer, since the DGA hopes to see this PIGA presented at the end of July. But there are always things to be corrected, and in the meantime it is not possible to start the bidding process for the works, i.e. to open a public tender for interested companies to apply.
According to the Heraldo, the fastest a PIGA has been approved in the history of this process in Aragon is eight months. The DGA assures that it will have it by the end of that year. In other words, only five months. It would break all records!
In any case, in order to prevent meteorological problems, these projects are started in spring or during the summer, so we were not going to see any movement this year either. Most likely, the works will be put out to tender in the spring and then we will start to see some movement.
Time is running out, since a large part of the financing for this gondola lift comes from European Union funds, and therefore there are certain obligations to comply with, and in this case the most pressing one is time. It must be completed before the first quarter of 2026.
- European Funds: 10 million
- Huesca Provincial Council: 3 million
- Government of Aragón: 9 million
Total: 22 million euros
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