Breakdowns are part of the reasoning. But just under normal operations, they’re absolutely unbearable to ride on when it’s hot thanks to them being greenhouses when the sun is that hot. You can probably easily add another ten degrees plus to the outside temperature in the monorail cabins and Skyride gondolas. Even with tinted/screened windows they very quickly become a health hazard in the heat thanks to the lack of airflow. Even the slightest delay, never mind a breakdown could quickly become a real issue for guests.
They have staff trained to evacuate the Skyride with ropes and harnesses etc. Not sure it has ever had to happen, and hopefully it will never be required.Actually that’s something I’ve always wondered, what exactly would the evacuation procedure be if say the Skyride broke down over the valley and there was a medical emergency on board?
I see AT86 just beat me to posting the page on the website showing some photos from back in the 90's which were sent to us a few years ago . Obviously that's with the old gondolas, but the premise is very much the same these days. The procedure is rehearsed incredibly regularly, so people would be evacuated as quickly as possible. There's the backup diesel generator to get things moving even in the event of a power outage, so a manual evacuation would be an incredibly rare event, usually if a gondola gets jammed preventing things from moving.Actually that’s something I’ve always wondered, what exactly would the evacuation procedure be if say the Skyride broke down over the valley and there was a medical emergency on board?