Wyler Aerial Tramway is an

aerial tramway An aerial tramway, sky tram, cable car, ropeway, aerial tram, telepherique, or seilbahn is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary ropes for support while a third moving rope provides propulsion. With this form of lift, the grip ...

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The tramway is operated by the

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) is a Texas state agency that oversees and protects wildlife and their habitats. In addition, the agency is responsible for managing the state's parks and historical areas. Its mission is to manage ...

and is located in

Franklin Mountains State Park Franklin Mountains State Park is a Texas state park in El Paso, Texas, in the United States. Park headquarters are located at an elevation of with the highest peak reaching . It is one of the largest urban parks in the nation lying completely ...

. The tramway complex covers on the east side of the Franklin Mountains. The gondolas travel along two 2600 foot 1 3/8" diameter steel cables to Ranger Peak, above sea level. The trip takes about four minutes and lifts riders up 940 vertical feet above the boarding area. From Ranger Peak you can see three states and two countries on a clear day. The tramway was closed indefinitely to the public in September 2018.

History

The tramway was built in 1959 by KTSM radio to aid in the construction of a transmitter tower. Karl O. Wyler managed the project. First opening to the public as the El Paso Aerial Tramway, the facility provided rides from 1960 to 1986, when high liability insurance costs forced the tram to stop public operations. The tram was only used to service the transmitter towers. Wyler donated the tramway for public use in his will. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department accepted the donation in 1997 and renovated and re-opened the tramway to the public in 2001. The tramway was closed indefinitely in September 2018 after the Texas Parks and Wildlife conducted an engineering analysis that concluded "the tram has surpassed its life expectancy and is no longer suited for public use." TPWD estimates the replacement of the tram would cost millions of dollars and the agency does not have the financial resources to execute a capital construction project of this size at this time.TPWD News Release announcing closure
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Gallery

File:Wyler Aerial Tramway2.jpg, Wyler Aerial Tramway File:Old gondola.jpg, Old Tramway gondola File:Ranger Peak.jpg, Ranger Peak with a view of Northeast El Paso in the background File:Ranger Peak gift shop.jpg, Ranger Peak gift shop File:Ranger Peak Gift Shop.jpg, Inside gift shop File:Looking north from Ranger Peak.jpg, Looking north at the Franklin Mountains from Ranger Peak File:Wyler Aerial Tramway.jpg, Current gondola File:Wyler Aerial Tramway 4.jpg, The tramway

References

External links

Wyler Aerial TramwaySummitpost.org - Ranger PeakHome movie of the Franklin Mountains State Park from the Sandoval Family
on the

Texas Archive of the Moving Image The Texas Archive of the Moving Image (TAMI) is an independent 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2002 by film archivist and University of Texas at Austin professor Caroline Frick, PhD. TAMI's mission is to preserve, study, and exhibit Texas film h ...

Aerial tramways in the United States Transportation buildings and structures in El Paso County, Texas Tourist attractions in El Paso, Texas Transportation buildings and structures in Texas 1959 establishments in Texas {{Texas-transport-stub