Plans for Queenstown’s proposed cable car network have been changed after residents raised concerns about its route through Frankton.
The revised design will see the cable car run alongside the Queenstown Events Centre rather than over its playing fields, while the Frankton interchange will be repositioned to connect directly with the bus hub.
Southern Infrastructure Ltd (SIL) has refined the network design after months of engagement with residents, community groups, businesses, landowners and Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC).
The engagement included four public webinars, a community survey with nearly 900 responses, and dozens of meetings with groups and landowners along the proposed route.
The four proposed Frankton stations are now within precincts identified in the council’s Te Kirikiri/Frankton Masterplan: Frankton Village, Queenstown Airport, the Five Mile Urban Corridor and Quail Rise.
SIL chief executive Ross Copland said the engagement process showed the importance of community feedback.
“Council and residents gave us fairly consistent feedback: don’t cross the playing fields. So we’ve worked with the engineers and found a way to make that work.
“The new alignment is slightly less direct, but it aligns better to the original Frankton Masterplan design.”
The changes also responded to the community’s wishes, he said.
The four stations across Frankton Flats are designed to make the cable car accessible to more residents, workers and visitors.
The Frankton Bus Hub station will be above the recently built golf course carpark, where both cable car lines will meet and connect with the existing bus network.
An airport station will sit next to the new terminal, while the Five Mile station will be on the edge of Hawthorne Drive, serving Queenstown Central, Five Mile and Frankton North.
A fourth station near the Shotover Bridge will serve planned development around Quail Rise and connect with cycle routes along the Shotover River.
“Station locations have been optimised to service the places people live, work, shop and where Queenstown is planning to grow. Our aim is to make the cable car integrate into the wider transport network,” Copland said.
However, he said the main source of negative survey feedback came from residents of southern corridor suburbs, including Jacks Point and Hanley’s Farm, who were concerned about increasing congestion and a lack of progress on solutions.
“We have to build the network in stages, and the Town Centre and Ladies Mile lines respond to the most pressing transport needs.
“But the survey feedback was clear – we need to accelerate our planning for a southern corridor transport solution.”
SIL is investigating options for expanding the network and engaging with potential partners.
The revised alignment will go to the council in December, with a fast-track application expected in the first quarter of 2027.
A decision is expected by the end of 2027, with construction planned between 2028 and 2030.
Station locations and the alignment remain indicative, subject to detailed design and approvals.