Handicap Access Lifts

TomWhite

Many years ago Sunapee added gondola cabins to their summit (double) lift specifically for handicap access to the summit. What a wonderful idea. For some reason I recall that they somehow manually detached (like old Loon and Wildcat). Maybe they just stopped the haul rope. With the advent of detachable chairs and the retirement/replacement of four passenger gondola cabins, I wonder if more resorts could do what Sunapee did. Areas that run their HSQ and HSS for sightseeing might acquire several cabins. I don’t know how compatible the grips would be or if they could be “swapped” with current grips for the season. Obviously Sunday River’s chondola is already that. Wildcat makes a total switch to cabins during the summer/fall. Base terminals are fairly “wheelchair friendly”. That’s not true with the summits. Even w/o getting off at the summit, many less mobile people could take a ride to the top.

steamboat1

I know the Killington gondola & the Peak Lodge are handicap accessible during summer/fall. Didn’t see them clean the snow off the handicap access off the top gondola terminal or to the Peak Lodge in winter though. Pico has a large adaptive ski program during the winter, even have their own building.

steamboat1

I’d imagine the Mt. Mansfield gondola at Stowe is also accessible to the handicapped. Not sure about the Cog Railway up Mt. Washington but in either case the handicapped can access both Mt. Mansfield or Mt. Washington using a car up the toll roads. Same thing with the toll road up Whiteface. There’s even an elevator up the middle of the mountain at Whiteface to access the peak for the handicapped..

obienick

<blockquote class=“Quote” rel=“steamboat1”>Not sure about the Cog Railway up Mt. Washington…</blockquote>

It isn’t accessible to people in wheelchairs or those who can’t climb stairs wtih very high risers.

bmwskier

The Chondola at Sunday River is handicap accessible I think. 

Peter

<blockquote class=“Quote” rel=“bmwskier”>The Chondola at Sunday River is handicap accessible I think. </blockquote> I believe ANSI requires all gondolas these days to have level loading instead of the old pin rail system.

obienick

Pin rail? As in the track to keep the gondola from swaying left to right?  Stowe has one and level boarding.  Pretty sure teh same with the old cabins at Stratton.

Peter

<blockquote class=“Quote” rel=“obienick”>Pin rail? As in the track to keep the gondola from swaying left to right?  Stowe has one and level boarding.  Pretty sure teh same with the old cabins at Stratton.</blockquote> You’re right about Stratton. Level boarding must have been optional back in the day as Whistler’s of the same model did not have it until it got the new cabins like Stratton’s. Last time I rode Stowe’s gondola it did not have level boarding. Has that changed?

obienick

I just watched a vid and I was completely wrong.  Not level boarding at Stowe, the platform is elevated, but not enough for level boarding and the gondola’s base hovers over the edge platform.