UK Cable Car Advisers launches to combine legal, property and engineering expertise for urban cable car schemes

A team of experts in planning, property and engineering has come together to create UK Cable Car Advisers. The new consultancy offering hopes to help change the perception that cable cars are only suitable for mountain resorts and is promoting cable car systems as an additional form of urban transport in the UK with significant advantages over more traditional modes.

UK Cable Car Advisers brings together lawyers Bircham Dyson Bell, property experts Ardent, and Neil Thompson, chief engineer on the London Eye and most recently overall technical adviser to the ‘Emirates Air Line’ in London – the first urban cable car in the UK.

The Emirates Air Line has demonstrated the possibilities of cable cars in an urban context. The system opened to the public on the 28th June 2012 to rave reviews and received in excess of 17,000 visitors on its first Saturday of operation and well over 50,000 visitors in its first week. UK Cable Car Advisers combines the expertise that would be needed by other UK cities or tourist attractions looking to emulate the London scheme.

Neil Thompson, engineering specialist explains; “The benefits of cable cars are enormous – they can create access for inaccessible destinations and provide a low-cost, energy-efficient and environmentally sound solution which can be delivered more quickly than other fixed modes of urban transport”.

“Many cities and tourist attractions are recognising the significant benefits offered by cable car systems in an urban setting. They use proven technology which has much lower capital and operating costs compared to bridges or tunnels, and they can become iconic attractions in their own right.” Cable Car systems are already being used as feeder systems for major cities freeing up roadways and removing the need for bus vehicles in city centres. We are keen to develop such long term planning with local authorities across the UK and drive towards a significant reduction / offsetting of bus journeys.

Robbie Owen, major projects partner at Bircham Dyson Bell LLP said;

“The innovative nature of cable cars means that local authorities, developers and master planners aren’t used to considering them as a form of urban transport. But they offer real possibilities in some cases, particularly because they can be delivered considerably quicker and more cheaply (by around 1/10th the cost) than fixed transport infrastructure like tramways.

“Having worked on the first urban scheme in London, we’re very well placed to advise others in the UK on the best way to deliver similar schemes.”

John Yexley, Director at Ardent said; “Cable cars require relatively small footprints and are therefore relatively easy to incorporate into existing urban environments with minimal disruption and at comparatively low land cost.

“The scheme in London can carry as many as 2,500 passengers per hour in each direction, and importantly carries bikes and wheelchairs, giving access for everyone to destinations that might otherwise remain out of reach.”

Many potential cable car schemes in the UK have never made it to fruition due to difficulties with planning permission and funding. UK Cable Car Advisers has the in-house expertise and a network of industry contacts to bring many more schemes to life around the UK.

More information about UK Cable Car Advisers can be found at: www.ukcablecaradvisers.co.uk