Though proposals for gondola-style transit projects have yet to take off in Arlington, they aren’t completely dead.
No plans for “gondola or gondola-like studies” are currently in the works here, Transportation Principal Planner Dan Malouff told ARLnow.
However, he directed ARLnow to an October 2023 study, which advocated for the transit option — which has something of a local cult following — as one possible way to improve connectivity between Georgetown and Rosslyn.
Additionally, a representative for Swyft Cities — a company specializing in aerial cabins that somewhat resemble the much-talked-about gondola proposal — said Northern Virginia has been on the business’s radar as it seeks to establish a foothold.
“We’ve had discussions with several U.S. cities, including some in the Northern Virginia/D.C. area, but unfortunately we can’t disclose details,” spokesperson Leonard Lee said. “We believe our innovative transportation system could be beneficial in many locations throughout the world.”
The company has been gaining some traction elsewhere in this country. In Texas, the city of Sugar Land is currently seeking a federal grant to study whether Swyft Cities’ transit technology, called “Whoosh,” might be feasible there.
Swyft Cities has named five other locales near Sugar Land — including the city of Arlington, Texas — as possible sites.
The Whoosh system involves a network of cables and moving cabins. Unlike Arlington’s long-standing concept of an aerial lift over the Potomac, it would operate like something between a rideshare system and a bus system — with passengers paying for private, automated cable rides between stops.
“Being that last-mile distributor between bus and rail, that’s where we fit in the set of transportation choices that are out there,” Swyft Cities CEO Jeral Poskey told the business magazine Fast Company.
ARLnow previously analyzed where this form of transportation might be useful in Arlington’s transit corridors, from Crystal City to Columbia Pike to Clarendon.
Several D.C. groups, meanwhile, concluded last year that “Georgetown needs dedicated transit connection to Metrorail.”
A recent study — carried out by the Federal City Council, the District Department of Transportation, the Georgetown BID and the National Capital Planning Commission — recommended possibilities including two bus options and, you guessed it, a gondola.
“This study’s identification of concrete ways to improve Georgetown’s transit access — combining improved bus service with an aerial Gondola — is an important step toward creating a more accessible neighborhood and advancing the District’s transportation equity, environmental and economic development goals,” Georgetown BID President Joe Sternlieb said.
The aerial option, according to a press release at the time, “remains a viable, attractive alternative, especially when combined with one or both Bus Alternatives.”
That was not the opinion of the Arlington County Board back in 2017, when it shot down a proposal to build a Rosslyn-Georgetown gondola to the tune of $80 to $90 million. At the time, the system was estimated to cost another $3.25 million per year to operate.
Finding funds remains a challenge for contemporary gondola supporters.
“No dedicated funding exists at present to advance any of the alternatives for further development,” the Georgetown BID’s webpage on the topic says.
Last year’s study marked the end of Arlington’s involvement in Georgetown gondola planning, Malouff said. It did not consider any options involving Whoosh.
“Studies of that nature do not generally get into the level of detail of selecting a vendor,” he said.
