Montenegro Plans Showpiece Cable Car Route

The plan to build the cable-car route from Kotor to Cetinje over Lovcen Mountain, originally initiated several decades ago, could finally be realised if the Montenegrin government finds international partners for the construction of the route which will link the coastline and the highest mountain peak in the country.

The route will run from Kotor to Cetinje via the Lovcen Mountain National Park and close to the Njegos Mausoleum, an important national historic monument erected in memory of the poet Njegos, who was both bishop and ruler of the country in the 19th century. 

According to the preliminary design unveiled by the government last week, the construction of the cable car will cost around 46.5 milion euro, of which the majority will be funded by a European Bank for Reconstruction and Development loan. 

However the state expects to earn millions from the cable car that would offer a magnificent view of the coastline and the mountains, particularly of Boka Bay, a UNESCO-protected site.

According to the government's study, which BIRN has seen, the annual income from would reach two million euro for the stage of the route between Kotor and Lovcen and 2.3 million euro for the stage beween Lovcen and Cetinje. 

The government hopes that it will be an added attraction for the hundreds of thousands of foreign tourists who visit the Montenegrin coast each summer, especially for visitors from the cruise ships that dock at Kotor from May to October each year.

It is estimated that the journey along the 15-kilometre route with its four way-stations will take 43 minutes. It will have 80 to 90 cars and will be able to carry between 1,200 and 1,400 people an hour. 

Cetinje's mayor, Alekandar Bogdanovic, said...