Saudi Gazette report Four cable car stations in the Asir region transport over 600 passengers an hour. The number of tourists benefitting from this service reaches 30,000 in the summer season. Director General of the National Tourism Company (Siyahiyah) Saleh Qadah said the first cable car station was established in New Abha with 22 cars at a height of 400 meters. It is four kilometers long. The second is between Mount Al-Akhdar and Abu Khayal at a height of 300 meters. With 11 cars, it is the only cable car in the world suspended between two pillars one kilometer apart, according to a report in the Makkah daily. The third includes cable cars that cross 650 meters at a height of 200 meters in Al-Habalah. The fourth has the leading height in the world at 1,600 meters in Soudah Asir. Qadah compared the project in Soudah Asir to airplanes because the cable cars cut through clouds due to the great heights between the mountains of Al-Soudah. He added that the cost for setting up this project in the Asir region was SR500 million. Maintenance is carried out every three months by operating companies, which are considered to be among the most famous in the world for cable car projects. The cable cars are operated by 50 Saudi young men who received extensive training. “The cable car is considered to be among the most important tourism projects and the most attractive for tourists as it is located in the most important tourist region where one can enjoy beautiful scenery. “Tourists can enjoy the beauty of Abha, the surrounding mountains and the plains of Tihama while riding the cable car,” he said.
