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Irvine may soon have a new way to appreciate a massive, ambitious, amazing park project from the sky.
Earlier this week, the Great Park Board, made up of the city’s elected leaders, voted to take the latest steps to develop an air gondola system through large outdoor spaces.
The board voted 5-1 to approve a possible pilot program at Swyft Cities, a transit technology startup.
As reported by LAIST, an agreement will be made between Irvine and Swift cities for a one-year trial period worth around $10 million worth of equipment and services, in exchange for being recognized as Great Park’s official mass transport partner.
“The money covers eight gondolas operating between two stations that link the visitor centre and balloons to the planned retail facility, and costs maintenance and operational costs three days a week,” Laist Write. “The rest of the time, the city will be on Hook.”
Swyft Cities have yet to be successful in launching the Gondola system in its short history, but they are working with other cities to help them develop their own plans for air vehicles, the website shows.
Great Park is a large planned site located at a decommissioned Marine base that currently weighs around 500 acres and is set to expand to nearly 1,300. The overall footprint when completed will be larger than both Central Park in New York and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
The partially completed park already receives millions of visitors a year, and as the green space develops, city officials are hoping for more visitors.
The city has been discussing how visitors can travel around the huge park for several years, and gondolas seem to be the most steaming system.
The rendering of the Swyft Cities Hoosh Gondola system is shown in this promotional image of a transit startup. The rendering of the Swyft Cities Hoosh Gondola system is shown in this promotional image of a transit startup.
However, concerns about transparency, the future of transportation systems after the pilot program is finished, and the ability of SWYFT cities to provide the system were one of the concerns raised during public comments.
“Swyft Cities doesn’t have the history of completion or operational projects, the management of public funds, and the ability to implement on this scale. Accepting donations to install pilots without these guarantees will be a limited go-to in the event of a system failing.”
One caller who described himself as a public transport advocate said the proposal “does not pass the smell test.”
However, Irvine City lawyers stressed that these latest steps remained exploratory and that Irvine is not responsible for this current time.
The board ultimately decided that council and board member Kathleen Treseder voted against and continued to explore the idea.
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