La Paz’s Mi Teleférico – it’s Terrifico!!

La Paz’s Mi Teleférico – it’s Terrifico!!

Bolivia is a poor country. But La Paz’s public transport system is very modern and it would be at home in any major city. La Paz is built in a bowl with steep sides, with maybe two flat streets, and so a rail system would never cut it. Instead, La Paz has ten interconnected cable car lines. And it is amazing!

Some technical details: 32km network, 38 Stations, 1398 cabins, 6 m/s average speed, 583,000 passengers per day. The fare is very reasonable: 3 Bol (33p) for the first line and 2 Bol (22p) for each subsequent line.

We used it extensively during our visit to La Paz. We stayed at the MAN garage in El Alto and the purple line terminus was just five minutes away. The first stop on this line takes you across El Alto before reaching the Faro Murillo interchange (4072m). The next stop is Obelisco (3603m) and is a drop of 400m (1300ft) down to the centre of La Paz. The view as you leave Murillo towards Obelisco is breath-taking. Firstly because the whole of La Paz suddenly comes into sight and, secondly, the cable car passes over a very steep cliff on its journey down to the centre.

We used individual ticketing, but the system allows for top-up cards which would make the transition from street to car even quicker. Here is the ticket office, ticket machine and gate line. Passengers are very respectful in queuing for tickets, at the gate line and entry into cars.

The modern stations bare a stark contrast to the surrounding buildings.

Using the Mi Teleférico is a really pleasurable way to travel. There is always something to see – although there have been complaints about the lack of privacy!