Work is underway on the first stage of a €16m (£11.1m) 2-year project to entirely redevelop the top of Solaise at Val d’Isère, one of the two mountains reached from the famous French resort’s Front de Neige base area.
In this case, “redevelop” means literally to reshape the summit. Bulldozers have shifted 70,000m3 – a million tons – of earth to create the setting for a whole new mid-mountain station at 2500m that, from this winter, will be the focal point for skiers and snowboarders.
The old Solaise Express four-person chairlift, along with the cable car, continues this winter to provide mountain access. However, from November 2016 these will be replaced by a ten-person gondola with 91 cabins, complete with heated seats and wi-fi. Lift users will have the option of parking their skis in exterior baskets or bringing them inside – the choice speeds up loading time.
The new gondola will increase capacity by 40% and can carry up to 3600 passengers per hour, bringing an end to any previous peak-hour bottlenecks at the base on high-season dates, and journey times will be cut to 7 minutes.
On the Val d’Isère side of Solaise itself, a giant, covered magic carpet lift has replaced the old Terrasse button lift. This serves a new secluded beginner area for both adults and children without the distraction of other skiers whizzing by.
The slope has been regraded from around 16% to 7% to make it a secure learning area. The lift also serves a new tubing area for children and adults. On the far side of Solaise, twin covered magic carpets have replaced the short double chair that brought you to the summit.
Top stations for all three lifts are on one level beside the new day lodge containing a café, a picnic area, a sun terrace and toilets. It’s a place where you can relax and enjoy spectacular views from the floor-to-ceiling windows.
The lift company has taken every step to minimise the environmental impact of the project. The redevelopment reduces the number of lift stations from a total of eight with 34 pylons to just two with 16 pylons.
For every tree that has been cut down, five others have been planted. Clumps of Silène de Suède (viscaria alpina), a wild flower with distinctive pink petals that grows naturally in the area of the day lodge, have been carefully dug up and relocated nearby.
The gondola machinery is being buried underground at the base area. This significantly reduces the noise impact both for inhabitants and the fauna living around the Front de Neige.