Tramway Road repairs to cost $58K, reopening timeline unclear

The only road to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is closed and will remain closed for an undetermined amount of time.

The road remains a huge mess for excavators. Last Friday, the road caved in after an underground pipe clogged with debris and boulders, forcing water to go over the roadway and washing it out entirely.

“There was a 70-year flood, we got more rain than the desert has seen in a while caused it to come down the mountain and essentially cause some flooding,” said Cara Youngman, the Public Relations Manager for the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.

The timeline may remain foggy, but the costs are a bit clearer, according to Youngman.

“For the road repair, and just the road repair, at this point, we know that’s a $58,000 repair,” Youngman said.

Read: Tramway Road ‘impassable’ due to storm damage

On Tuesday, officials said the culvert at the damaged portion of Tramway Road was filled with mud and debris. Repairs of the road could start once that is cleared and stream runoff is returned to the culvert.

The Tram’s nine parking lots sustained minor asphalt damage. The roadway bridges were certified structurally sound by the Tram’s civil engineer.

At the Tram, officials said the power line at the Valley Station was severed, which resulted in damage to one of the station’s electrical panels. That power line feeds electricity to the Mountain Station. Currently, the Mountain Station is running solely on generator power.

The Mountain Station itself sustained only minor water damage. Cleanup efforts will begin once the road is accessible again.

There was no damage to the Tram’s systems, which include the engine room and towers.