Engeberg_Magazin_No_17

Eröffnungsfeier «TITLIS Xpress» Freitag, 11. Dezember 2015, Titlis Talstation ab 17.30 Uhr Partystimmung mit DJ 18.30 Uhr Einsegnung der Gondelbahn 19.00 Uhr Konzert Beatrice Egli

TITL IS Xpress opening ceremony Friday, 11 December 2015, Titlis va lley station DJs f rom 5:30 p.m. onwards 6:30 p.m.: Blessing of the gondola lif t 7 p.m.: Beatrice Egli concer t

Die neue Gondelbahn bei einer Probefahrt anfangs Oktober.

The new gondola lift during a trial run in early October

As of this December, the most important trans- port route into the Titlis area will be more modern, more comfortable, and considerably faster. Thanks to the new eight-seater gondola lift TITLIS Xpress, the journey from Engelberg to Stand will take half the time, and queues at the valley station will be much shorter. The opening has even attracted a Schlager pop star to Engel- berg! Centra l Swiss singing sensation Beatrice Egli, who shot to fame af ter winning Ger- many’s version of Pop Idol, is set to at tend the

cha llenge hav ing so many people on the moun- tain while construc tion was going on,” reca lls Peter. “At times the mountain was just too f u ll.” Never theless, the workers were able to stick to the ambitious schedu le and the lif t will com- mence operations in December as planned. The opening of the TITL IS Xpress sig- na ls the end of overcrowded stations and long waits, as the number of passengers that can be transpor ted f rom the va lley station per hour will increase f rom 1,600 to 2, 400. Journey time will a lso be reduced by ha lf, taking on ly

opening of Engelberg’s new gondola lif t. The new cable car will transpor t passengers quick ly and comfor tably up to skiing, hiking and day-trip destinations. At the event, Beatrice, whose latest a lbum

16 minutes f rom Engelberg to Stand v ia (but without hav ing to change at) Trübsee. Passengers no longer have the option of disembarking at Gerschnia lp, but this area is still ser v iced by the ex ist-

“It was a real challenge having so many people on the mountain while construction was going on.”

went gold, will treat ever yone to a concer t of her pop hits, following the blessing of the lif t by Engelberg’s priest Father Patrick. “We want to give the new gondola lif t a wor thy open- ing ceremony, as it has been a huge construc- tion projec t for Engelberg,” says Titlis Rotair spokesman Peter Rein le. “The event is main ly for the loca ls, those f rom the surrounding re- gion, and our regu lar guests,” he adds. Admis- sion to the concer t, therefore, is f ree of charge. For many of those involved in the lif t ’s construc tion, Beatrice’s concer t will be the f irst chance they have had to relax since the projec t began a lmost two years ago. “The rough ly 20-month construc tion period was ver y cha llenging,” says Peter. “It was an excit- ing time, but many people felt under a lot of pressure.” Construc tion was a lways dependent on weather conditions, and wasn’ t made any easier by the fac t that a record number of v isi- tors used the Titlis cableways last summer – as good as that was for business. “It was a rea l

ing f unicu lar railway, which runs ever y 20 or 30 minutes depending on the season. There is one question that will be of par ticu lar interest to f reeriders: How can they get back to Trüb- see f rom Gerschnia lp af ter descending the powder y slope of the Laub? “This is a topic that people are ver y passionate about,” explains Peter. For tunately, he was able to put ever y- one’s minds at ease: the Angel Eyes cableway depar ts ever y hour on the hour, or more of ten if required, between Gerschnia lp and Trüb- see. As this cableway is a lso used to transpor t goods, the f reeriders might get lucky and not face a long wait at the end of their run. “This winter will determine how we develop this ser v ice in the f uture,” says Peter. With the launch of this new and improved ser v ice in the Titlis area, Engelbergers and v isitors will a ll have something to sing about this winter!

10

11

fokus | focus

fokus | focus