OPINION: Get on-board with the return of the Cairngorm funicular
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It's a big day for Cairngorm Mountain and the strath.
There has always been much riding on the funicular railway and now, finally, there are passengers riding on it too once more.
It remains to be seen if the design of the second mountain line proves any more robust than the first, which can hardly be said to have stood the test of time.
In this day and age, 17 years doesn't seem very long.
Hopefully the huge expense on the repair job will prove to have been worth every penny.
The latest estimate is £25 million since the train was stopped in Autumn 2018 when the cracks started showing themselves in the piers below it, so much money – and again, so many altered budgets along the way – that people have stopped talking about the bill for the first funicular railway, back in 2001.
We could spend this whole piece raking over the claims and counterclaims about the funicular which has been the source of controversy since the plan was first hatched.
Should it have been a gondola, should the structure been made of metal like most funicular viaducts?
We could even spend it pontificating on the various on-going court actions being taken and the latest calls for a public enquiry.
But today let us all simply get on board with the funicular and celebrate its return after 52 months.
It is indeed wonderful to see the mountain railway back in action again.
HIE's head of property and infrastructure Dave Macleod said: "This will make a huge improvement to the customer experience at Cairngorm and strengthen the appeal of the wider area to attract visitors throughout the year."
After all the agony of deciding what to do with the disappointing failure of the funicular mark I on the hill, reinstating the concept of an easy, covered ride to the top proved uniquely challenging.
It has been an incredibly tough balancing act, juggling engineering dilemmas with environmental duties – and all the time on a mountain top in all seasons.
But there they are today - the newly branded Eagle and Hare. A change from the past carriage name Coire and Cas to signal a new dawn for the mountain train.
The commitment has been made, the construction carried out.
The funicular will greatly increase uplift capacity in winter for skiers and snowboards easing pressure on the ski resort's other uplift and allowing quicker and more comfortable access to the top – giving weary legs a rest from the Pomas and T-bars.
The attraction widens the mountain's appeal to visitors year-round.
The return of the train also means the re-opening of a refurbished Ptarmigan Station complete with new 270 degree exhibition and bar and restaurant – reducing demand on the Day Lodge's catering facilities which have been stretched at peak times for hungry snowsports visitors during an encouraging start to the winter season.
Let us all hope that today marks the start of Cairngorm Mountain really being on the up and re-asserting itself as Scotland's premier snowsports destination.
