One of the things to check when traveling by plane on your own is how to get from the airport to the city center once you have landed and disembarked. Subway, train, bus, taxi, shuttle, and other private transportation options are usually common, at least at major terminals.

However, few can boast what El Alto International Airport has: nothing less than a cable car. To be precise, it is called Mi Teleférico, and it bridges the elevation difference of just over 500 meters (1,640 feet) that separates the city of El Alto—situated at an altitude of 4,150 meters (13,615 feet)—from the capital, La Paz, which lies below at 3,625 meters (11,893 feet).

El Alto is the most densely populated municipality in the country, with about 885,000 inhabitants. It was founded from a camp established in 1548 by the Spanish explorer Alonso de Mendoza in what is now the La Ceja neighborhood. The city spreads across a relatively flat plateau that initially seemed perfect for locating the capital’s airport. Eventually, it became the highest-altitude international airport in the world; however, this altitude prevents wide-body (twin-aisle) aircraft from operating there, requiring them to use Viru Viru International Airport in Santa Cruz de la Sierra instead.

Cable Car La Paz Bolivia
Aerial view of El Alto Airport. Credit: Alan Lebeda / Wikimedia Commons

Despite this, El Alto Airport was inaugurated in the summer of 1965 and, interestingly, was initially named JFK (John Fitzgerald Kennedy). In the early 21st century, it underwent an expansion, followed by nationalization in 2013, becoming state-owned.

As mentioned earlier, it is connected to La Paz, which lies at the foot of the plateau, through several routes: a highway, multiple avenues used by taxis, the Wayna Bus, and, most notably, Mi Teleférico, which began operations in the spring of 2014.

The initial idea was to link La Ceja (El Alto’s main commercial area) with the La Florida area of La Paz. A first project carried out in 1968 by a Swiss company proposed building a funicular, but it was discarded due to its high cost.

Cable Car La Paz Bolivia
The red line of La Paz’s cable car. Credit: EEJCC / Wikimedia Commons

In the 1990s, efforts to establish the system continued, addressing concerns such as the potential elimination of jobs for minibus drivers connecting the two cities and the limited capacity, which would affect ticket prices.

Nonetheless, the project moved forward, though with modifications to the original idea: instead of a single line between San Francisco Square and La Ceja, there would be a transfer station on Laikakota Hill, from which several lines would branch out to cover more areas of La Paz.

A key push came in 1999—but from hundreds of miles away, in Cochabamba—where the Christ of Concord Cable Car, Bolivia’s first, was inaugurated, connecting the namesake monument on San Pedro Hill to the city center with a 864-meter-long (2,835-foot) line.

Cable Car La Paz Bolivia
One of La Paz’s cable car stations. Credit: EEJCC / Wikimedia Commons

Five years later, the Colombian city of Medellín launched its own system, the Metrocable, designed as a social metro network (dubbed “Cultura Metro”) to integrate poor peripheral neighborhoods with the city center. This helped solidify cable cars as a viable solution for both urban mobility and social integration, particularly in cities where rugged Andean geography makes ground transportation challenging.

Indeed, La Paz and Medellín are not the only cities with such systems. Other urban cable cars exist in Bariloche and Salta (Argentina); Santiago (Chile); Bogotá, Manizales, Cali, and Pereira (Colombia); and Caracas (Venezuela). In North and Central America, notable systems include those in Santo Domingo and Santiago de los Caballeros (Dominican Republic) and Mexico City (Mexico).

Soon, Santiago de Chile will join this list. However, it’s important to clarify that we are specifically referring to urban cable cars used for public transportation, as there are many others designed for tourism.

Cable Car La Paz Bolivia
Another station of La Paz’s urban cable car. Credit: EEJCC / Wikimedia Commons

Returning to La Paz, its system became necessary due to the approximately 350,000 daily trips between the city and El Alto, according to a study. Some technical challenges had to be resolved, such as the placement of towers and the relocation of the terminal to the Zapata field—behind the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés—but construction finally began in mid-2012, and Mi Teleférico started operations two years later.

It launched with a single line, the Red Line, but additional lines were added in the following years, all named after colors: Blue, Orange, White, Light Blue, Purple, Brown, and Silver. In the near future, the Gold Line will be introduced, and the existing lines will be expanded.

As seen, the La Paz cable car system is similar to Medellín’s in its metro-style design, connecting various city areas and linking La Paz with El Alto. Additionally, there is an extra tourist-oriented line to Oruro, facilitating visits to the Sanctuary of the Virgin of Socavón. In total, the system comprises nearly 11.5 kilometers (7.1 miles) of track with 11 stations, four of which offer parking facilities. In 2021, Central Station was complemented with an adjacent park.

The cable cars, which can accommodate ten seated passengers, operate continuously, departing every twelve seconds for 17 hours a day—though travel times vary depending on the route. Ticket prices start at three bolivianos for a single ride, with various fares and passes available.

As with any public transportation system, Mi Teleférico has faced occasional operational issues during its still-short history. However, it remains the largest urban cable car network in the world.

This article was first published on our Spanish Edition on February 7, 2025: La impresionante red de teleféricos urbanos de La Paz en Bolivia es la más grande del mundo

SOURCES

Mi Teleférico (Web oficial)

Lugares de Nieve, ¿Dónde está la red de teleféricos más grande del mundo?

Wikipedia, Mi Teleférico

  • Share on:

Discover more from LBV Magazine English Edition

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.

Follow LBV Magazine on Google News