Will Zürich be getting a cable car across the lake?

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Ankara has one. Rio de Janeiro has one. And La Paz in Bolivia has one. Urban cable cars are a popular solution to solving traffic congestion the world over.

When it comes to tiny Switzerland, we have no less than 2450 different cable car installations. This makes sense given that the mighty Alps have wrinkled up our landscape, creating deep valleys and high peaks. For transportation in urban spots, the Swiss have relied on boats, buses and trains.

The vision for a cable car across Lake Zürich

If it was up to the Zürcher Kantonalbank, a cable car will soon connect two opposing sides of Lake Zürich. In fact, the Swiss bank is willing to spend 60 million francs to construct a temporary cable car.

That's one way to bring the games to the people, right? Needless to say, many residents are happy about the prospect of seeing their city from a bird's eye perspective. With turquoise waters below, the mountains in the far distance on one side and the peaks of Zürich's churches on the other, this cable car sounds like a one in a lifetime experience.

Thanks to 14 individual gondolas, up to 2000 passengers could travel from the gold coast to the "sneeze" coast every hour starting in June 2020.

However, for every enthusiast, there is a critic. This idea is still in the planning stages and the bank has not yet received a building permit. For instance, many residents of the ritzy Seefeld neighborhood are opposing the construction of a gigantic concrete pole which is necessary for the ropeway to work.

Others are proposing more efficient ways of utilizing this pile of money. For 60 million francs, a permanent boat connection could be established between Tiefenbrunnen and Wollishofen. Yet others are proposing a subway or a bridge.