<h1>Construction of a New Cable Car to Sněžka Has Begun</h1>

Pec pod Sněžkou (Trutnovsko) - With the takeover of the construction site, the Trutnov construction company BAK has started building a new cable car to the highest Czech mountain, Sněžka. The old cable car should be operational by July 2012, while the new one is expected to be completed in spring 2014. This was stated by the general director of BAK, Dušan Čížek. The investor of the cable car is the town of Pec pod Sněžkou.
     Before winter, the builders intend to concrete nearly all the foundations for the new poles in the lower section. They will also start constructing the new lower cable car station and will bring network relocations to it. A helicopter will also be used during the construction of the foundations. The cable car will follow the same route as the current over 60-year-old installation.
      The new lower cable car station, however, will be shifted towards the parking lot near the Lesovna chalet. The intermediate station at Růžová hora and the upper station at Sněžka will remain in their current locations. Work requiring the complete shutdown of the cable car will begin in the second half of next year. For example, in the upper section, the foundations of the current poles will be demolished, and new ones will be concreted in their place.
     The company BAK is constructing the cable car in a partnership with the cable car company Leitner. The BAK and Leitner consortium offered the lowest price in the tender of three applicants, amounting to 299 million crowns excluding VAT. Pec pod Sněžkou has received a European subsidy of 230 million crowns for the construction of the cable car, with approximately another 70 million crowns to be covered by a loan.
     Čížek had previously stated to ČTK that the construction will be very demanding due to the location and the local climatic conditions. Most of the route is in a sloping and hard-to-access terrain, in addition to being in a strictly protected area of the Krkonošsko National Park. A significant part of the work will be done using a helicopter, whose operation is dependent on the weather.
     The new cable car will have four-person cabins instead of the current open seats for two passengers. The hourly capacity of the cable car will remain at 250 people. However, the new cable car will be better able to withstand wind. Annually, around 100,000 tourists will ride the cable car to the summit.