As it has been several times since the beginning of summer, the Aiguille du Midi cable car in Chamonix is at a standstill.
The main problem lies in the the successive defects on the tractor cable of the second section. Many hypotheses have been taken into consideration in order to fix it.
The Compagnie du Mont-Blanc is studying the possibility of using a single cable instead of two. A single cable is lighter and would allow the use of a single splice, simply to join the two ends of the cable and thus "close the loop".
"Better resistance to twisting"
According to Le Dauphine, this splice would be positioned in a way to not affect the cable car (because the rotation is done back and forth and not in a loop), something impossible with two splices. This is to avoid the phenomenon of torsion.
The constitution of the cable will be completely different: according to CEO Mathieu Dechavanne, the cable won't be "round" but "compact" for "a better resistance to the torsion". The cable must be "perfectly aligned" to avoid the "telephone cord" effect.
These changes are "very likely" to succeed: "We do not want to fix a solution in the meantime. We want to find a solution once and for all!".
The estimated cost is several hundred thousand euros, offset expected by insurance benefits.
The new cable is about to be ordered and the reopening is scheduled for the beginning of next winter.
