Cable car in Cortina will not be ready on time for the start of the Winter Olympics

(Patria) - The cable car that was supposed to transport spectators to the women's Olympic competitions in Cortina will not be completed on time, which is why the organizers of the Winter Olympic Games have requested the closure of schools to reduce pressure on the traffic system of the resort in the Dolomites.

The Apollonio-Socrepes cable car is one of the most controversial infrastructure projects for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games, which will be jointly organized by the alpine town of Cortina d’Ampezzo and the Italian capital Milan from February 6 to 22, Reuters writes.

Work on the system, which was supposed to transport spectators directly from the city center to the ski slopes, started late, and some residents have expressed concern about the safety of the location, given that it is located in an area prone to landslides.

Despite growing doubts about the realization of the project, which is still unfinished a week before the start of the Games, Simico, the state agency responsible for Olympic infrastructure, announced on Friday that work is progressing according to plan.

However, in a letter dated January 29, addressed to the highest representative of the central government in the province of Belluno, the chief operating officer of the Games, Andrea Francisi, stated that Simico had informed the organizers the day before that the cable car would not be delivered within the planned deadline.

In a statement released on Saturday, Simico stated that work on the cable car is continuing and that safety checks, necessary for its final commissioning, are planned for next week, adding that logistical issues, such as school closures, are not within its jurisdiction.

In the letter, which was not previously published, Francisi described the cable car as a key element of the Olympic mobility plan for Cortina, which will also host competitions in curling, bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton.

- The loss of this strategic infrastructure, just before the start of Olympic operations, creates serious organizational challenges, with a significant impact on people flow management, safety, and the system's overall ability to absorb alternative forms of mobility - the letter states.

Therefore, the organizers have requested the local authorities to close schools in Cortina on February 10 and 12, and if possible on February 11, in order to relieve the city's traffic network during the key days of the Olympic activities. The closure of schools on the most critical days was deemed necessary to maintain order and the functioning of the transport system.