The inventors of a novel cable car system which is soon to be trialled at Remarkables Park are planning a visit to Wānaka to see if the ‘Whoosh’ could work to link Three Parks and the Wānaka CBD.

Unlike traditional gondola or cable car, where cabins must be attached to a moving ropeway to travel, ‘Whoosh’ is described as a ‘smart, flexible transport system’.

It uses an expandable network of cable and rail where vehicles can move through a variety of routes, which users can book using an app, much like a ride-hailing service.

Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) councillor Lyal Cocks told the Wānaka App he attended a presentation by Whoosh’s founders, the Holmes Solutions Group, earlier this year.

"There's no visible pollution to the landscape and minimal power is used," he said.

Lyal had mentioned the idea to Three Parks’ developer Allan Dippie earlier this week.

“He thought it was a good idea,” Lyal said.

While Remarkables Park co-founder Alister Porter said it was “not his place” to comment, a ‘pilot project’ section on the company’s website indicates a Whoosh trial is due to start in Remarkables Park, Frankton.

“With around 3.5 million visitors annually, the area is facing challenges with traffic,” the Whoosh website said. “Whoosh is helping Remarkables Park plan to reduce congestion and emissions, improve mobility, and save money.”

Austrian cable car company Doppelmayr also launched a case for adding aerial cable cars to New Zealand's urban transport mix yesterday (November 29). 

A Doppleymayr cable car system in Portland, Oregon.

The case was put forward by the company’s New Zealand chief executive Garreth Hayman, which he said had identified 10 feasible sites the technology could fix transport challenges.

Dopplemayr is a ski-lift and tourism-gondola giant but it has expanded into urban areas including Portland and Paris, where he said they complemented existing travel systems. 

It’s not clear how soon the Whoosh team will visit Wānaka. 

Lyal said Holmes Solutions Group CEO Chris Allington told him earlier this week they will visit when they can fit it into their schedule.

PHOTOS: Supplied