Could Gondolas Really Soar Over Denver? We Asked the Experts.

Instead of sitting in sluggish Speer Boulevard traffic, why not soar above it? That’s the appeal of urban gondolas, a trendy topic in city planning. Over the last decade, a slew of U.S. cities—including Boulder, Albany, Austin, Baton Rouge, Chicago, Cleveland, and Seattle—have considered building aerial trams that would whisk commuters high above rush hour. None of the seven have pulled it off. Now it’s Denver’s turn to dream big, or at least, that’s what businessman Ryan Ross believes.

A former investigative reporter for Westword who now owns a private investigation firm, Ross is the unlikely creator of an ambitious, if not extremely pie-in-the-sky, plan called New Downtown Denver. The city set aside $570 million to invest in rejuvenating downtown, then put out a call for applications outlining projects that might draw people to the area. Ross thinks his proposal could take Denver in a different (upward) direction.

What’s in Ross’ Proposal?

He says the idea came to him as he watched progress on the 16th Street Mall revitalization project from his office window. “I was disappointed because the new mall looks an awful lot like the old mall,” he says. “We’ve had 40 years of buses and brick pavement, and now we’re getting another 40 years of buses and brick pavement.”

His suggestions include a gondola system that would traverse three routes from 7 a.m. to midnight, with riders using their phones to request on-demand service, similar to hailing an Uber or Lyft. (Whoosh LP, a New Zealand–based company that has an office in Boulder, is developing on-demand gondola technology and has studied the possibility of a route in Denver. Ross is using Whoosh’s renderings to represent his plan, though he stresses that the two are not affiliated.)

The routes would go between Union Station and Civic Center Park, around Civic Center Park, and from Union Station to LoHi and back. Ross also envisions moving sidewalks spanning the entire 15-block mall, and a 1,000-seat indoor-outdoor amphitheater in a reinvented Skyline Park. He estimates the total price tag at about half a billion dollars, with the gondolas alone costing some $120 to $340 million.

If you think the idea sounds outlandish, you’re not alone. That’s generally been the tone of Denverites’ reactions on social media, where more than one commenter drew comparisons to the Simpsons’ classic episode about a monorail boondoggle.

Ross is undaunted, arguing that gondolas are a natural symbol of Colorado. “There is no city in the world for which a gondola downtown would be a better fit,” he says. “Denver is the gateway to the Rocky Mountains and to world-class ski areas, all of whom have gondola systems. So if you install a gondola in downtown Denver, you’d be taking advantage of the worldwide recognition of something that makes Denver different from any other major metropolitan area.” Ski resorts could advertise by putting their name and logo on a particular gondola, he suggests, and tourists might jump at the chance to see the city from above.

Getting Denver’s Gondola Off the Ground

This isn’t the first time Denver has considered a gondola. The city’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure shared a plan in 2020 for the Central Platte Gondola, which would’ve connected Union Station and the Highland neighborhood. The next step was a feasibility study, but that never took place, according to department spokesperson Nancy Kuhn. (Boulder also flirted with the idea of gondolas in 2020, releasing a report that envisioned a route between University Hill and downtown.)

Funding obviously presents a challenge. Ross said his plan could be paid for via four sources: municipal bonds; funding from the $570 Downtown Development Authority fund; revenue from ticket sales; and potential federal grants. (That last one seems likely to be a tall order under President Trump’s new transportation secretary, former Congressman and reality TV star Sean Duffy, who recently described New York City’s subway system as a “s—hole” and threatened to cut its funding.)

Denver city planning reps told 5280 that they haven’t considered Ross’ plan, but they welcome the conversation it’s starting. “While we have not yet reviewed this specific application, Denver is looking forward to exploring all creative and productive applications submitted,” said Laura Swartz, a Downtown Denver Development Authority spokesperson, in a statement. Briett Diehl, a spokesperson for the Downtown Denver Partnership, echoed that sentiment, saying that the group has not met with Ross about his proposal but is enthusiastic about creative ideas to improve the city: “We are in a major moment of opportunity for Downtown Denver, one that calls for all of us to dream big.”

Where Do Gondolas Succeed?

Gondolas are much more common in South America, Asia, and Europe than in the United States, where New York City and Portland, Oregon, are the only two cities with substantial public tramways. Why haven’t gondolas lifted off in America? One reason is the sprawling nature of our cities. “Most public transportation, including gondolas, tends to thrive in areas with a high level of density, or where the topography makes building more roads very impractical,” says Jota Samper, an associate professor in environmental design at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Another reason is cultural: Americans love privacy and personal space. With gondolas, “These things are flying over your house, or in front of your office building,” Samper says. “That kind of intrusion is more difficult for people to accept in the United States.” Indeed, when Portland built its gondola system in 2006, one resident who opposed the project complained, “I can sit on the toilet and see the tram go by.”

In the early 2000s, when gondolas were initially under discussion in Portland, residents there scoffed at the idea, just as Denverites are doing now. “It was considered somewhat outlandish,” says Dylan Rivera, a spokesperson for the Portland Bureau of Transportation. “Early on, it seemed pretty fantastical, pretty out there…but it has really lived up to expectations for creating an iconic part of our skyline and a tourism draw. People take so much pride in the tram that they put it on T-shirts, posters, mugs, socks, you name it.” Aerial transit is especially handy during winter storms, he says. Icy roads make driving to work a hazard? Avoid them entirely with a gondola. “We actually extend the tram’s hours during winter weather emergencies,” Rivera says.

Portland had the perfect conditions for a gondola, says Carrie Makarewicz, an associate professor at University of Colorado Denver’s Urban and Regional Planning Department. “The [gondola] in Portland taking patients and staff to the hospital atop a steep hill is very successful, especially with the bike valet and corral at the base,” she wrote in an email. “The steep conditions and narrow road that couldn’t be expanded or covered efficiently with transit was ideal for a gondola.”

But Makarewicz sees potential in the Mile High City, too. “Downtown Denver attractions are distant from each other,” she wrote. For example, a trip from Union Station to Civic Center Park requires a nearly 30-minute walk. “[Gondolas] could be a way to help people go between these distant attractions without adding to traffic.”

Samper, the CU design professor, is from Medellín, Colombia, whose gondolas draw some 250,000 daily riders and have even been credited with helping to reduce crime rates. They were relatively affordable to build, Samper says, especially compared with the cost of constructing a new highway or digging tunnels for a train. “Gondolas don’t require the displacement of many structures,” he says. “They provide a beautiful view of the city, and they’re very democratic. In Medellín, the tourists that come to the city and the poorest people all ride together. It’s a wonderful experience.”

Gondolas make intuitive sense when challenging terrain (like Medellín’s steep hills or New York’s East River, which the Roosevelt Island Tramway crosses) impedes other forms of transit. But Denver is flat. Why build an aerial tram here, other than for the gee-whiz factor? Samper says it’s a fair question. He also expressed surprise at the fact that Ross’ plan calls for gondolas that would traverse only a small area.

“I don’t think I’d ride a gondola just four blocks’ distance to another part of downtown,” Samper says. “What if it started at the airport, and then ended with a view of the mountains? That would be an experience I would pay for.”