Haifa Cable Car Resumes Service After Technical Fault Strands 16 Passengers

By מערכת ice

Translated & summarized from Ice by baba

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Hebrew · 10 newsrooms covering

Haifa's "Rechavlit" cable car system experienced a technical failure on Thursday, leaving 16 passengers stranded for about an hour. Emergency services conducted a rescue operation, and the system has since resumed service. The incident occurred shortly after scheduled maintenance was completed, raising questions about the cause. The cable car connects major educational institutions and the central bus station.

The story in 5 lines · by baba

Sixteen passengers were stranded for an hour in Haifa's cable car system due to a technical fault.
Emergency services successfully rescued all passengers and restored the cable car's operation.
The malfunction occurred just two days after the system completed scheduled maintenance.
The cable car connects the Technion, University of Haifa, and the central bus station.
The incident prompted an emergency response involving multiple rescue and municipal units.

Haifa Cable Car Resumes Service After Technical Fault Strands 16 Passengers — Editorial illustration generated by baba News, not a photograph of the event.

A technical malfunction caused Haifa's cable car system, the "Rechavlit," to halt mid-journey on Thursday, leaving 16 passengers stranded in their cabins suspended between stations. Emergency services were dispatched and, after approximately an hour of operations, successfully rescued the passengers and restored the cable car's service.

The incident occurred in two different sections of the system. While some passengers were evacuated from the segment between Dori Station and the University of Haifa, 16 individuals remained trapped in the section between Dori and Check Post.

Yazid Suleiman, CEO of the cable car company, explained that a part needed replacement at Check Post to free the remaining passengers. He confirmed that passengers in the Dori-University segment had already been brought down. An emergency command post was established to manage the rescue, with firefighters, MDA paramedics, and municipal police units responding. Haifa Municipality CEO David Luria was present at the scene, and Mayor Yona Yahav was kept informed and directed full support for the rescue efforts.

Following the replacement of the faulty part and further actions by the operating company, all stranded passengers were safely evacuated. The cable car resumed operation after being shut down for about an hour. The incident raises questions, especially since the system underwent scheduled maintenance just days prior. Cable Express, the operator, had announced the completion of this maintenance on November 10th, only two days before the breakdown.

The cable car, which began operating in 2022, covers a 4.4-kilometer route connecting the Haifa Bay Central Bus Station, the Technion, and the University of Haifa. It remains unclear if there is a connection between the recent maintenance work and the malfunction.