Aletsch Arena: Construction Of The Eggishorn Project To Start In 2024
Aletsch Bahnen AG will start construction of a new cable car from Fiescheralp to Eggishorn in 2024.
This modern facility replaces the old cable car and is complemented by a new restaurant and a glacier adventure world in the mountain station. The work will take place during the summer of 2024 and 2025 in order not to affect winter operations in 2024/25. The official opening is planned for December 2025.
Increased performance
The innovative aerial tramway from Garaventa AG consists of two cabins with 80 people each. These now transport 800 people per hour. The technical design is a novelty: in order to ensure greater availability during inspection times, only one of the two cabins can be sent on its way. The foundations based on a special geotechnical concept ensure that intensive maintenance is no longer necessary due to melting permafrost.
The Eggishorn mountain station area is on permafrost ground. This subsoil is interspersed with ice and moves as a result of thawing and freezing stress, so structural measures to compensate for these movements are essential for the new station. These measures protect the building from deformation damage and the position of the supporting cables from lateral displacement. Since the neighboring restaurant building and the connecting corridor are also on permafrost ground, these also need to be provided with structural measures.
NEW MOUNTAIN RESTAURANT
Glacier-shaped floor plan
The architects were inspired by the Great Aletsch Glacier for the new restaurant. Specifically from Konkordiaplatz. The three main firn streams flow together here: the Great Aletschfirn, the Jungfraufirn and the Ewigschneefeld as well as the small secondary firn, the Grüneggfirn. The merger creates the Great Aletsch Glacier. The floor plan of the restaurant depicts the Konkordiaplatz with the flowing firn streams, which ends on the southern side in the glacier tongue with a spectacular viewing platform. The restaurant has a capacity similar to the current building, plus a terrace with a fantastic view of the impressive mountains.
Sustainable infrastructure
The Great Aletsch Glacier is a UNESCO World Heritage Site “Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch” and the Eggishorn viewpoint is part of the area. The planned buildings will be located just outside the perimeter and will be optimally integrated into the sensitive landscape. They offer a significant improvement over the voluminous buildings from the 1960s and 1980s. There is no need to enclose the station, which would result in a large volume that would be visible from far away. The solar energy that is abundant on the Eggishorn should be used.
https://www.aletscharena.ch/aletsch-bahnen-ag/projekt-eggishorn-2025
