Mount Aso Ropeway, Aerial tramway in Aso, Japan.
Mount Aso Ropeway was an aerial tramway climbing 108 m from the west side of Mount Aso's Nakadake to the crater rim over 858 m. Its single cabin held 91 passengers and took four minutes; the cabin was redesigned by Eiji Mitooka in 2009. The line was dismantled by 2019.
The tramway opened in 1958 as the first aerial cable system ever built on an active volcano. Its construction showed that such transport could work safely in extreme geological conditions.
The second floor of Aso West Station held Aso Super Ring, an indoor projection-mapping attraction with four multi-screens and a diorama screen. Opened in 2014, it was then Japan's largest of its kind, letting visitors experience Aso's four seasons through festivals and landscapes and simulating the formation of the Aso caldera and the Nakadake crater.
Operations depend on the volcano's activity level, so access may be limited or unavailable on certain days. Check current conditions before visiting, as volcanic alerts can affect whether the tramway is running.
The 2009 cabin redesign was by Eiji Mitooka, who also designed JR Kyushu's "Tsubame" shinkansen. A planned rebuild with two linked cabins of 56 places total was abandoned on 24 December 2019, and the Aso Sanjo Terminal opened at the former Aso West Station site on 12 February 2021.
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