The tightened corona measures in Bavaria are pushing the Bavarian cable car companies to the brink of the economic abyss.
The criticism of 2Gplus is great and is seen as a "lockdown through the back door".
The order of the 2Gplus regulation for cable cars, which has been in force since November 24, has caused complete incomprehension among the operators. According to a press release, the personnel requirements and the logistical effort involved in testing the guests cannot be met by the companies, many of which are small family businesses. In addition, the test capacities would not be available at all. An economical operation is no longer possible. "We have a complete lack of understanding," says Matthias Stauch, President of the Association of German Cable Cars (VDS) and board member of the Bayerische Zugspitzbahn Bergbahn AG .. "This is a lockdown through the back door," Peter Lorenz, the deputy director of the VDS, is quoted as saying. “From our point of view, these measures are absolutely disproportionate. We demand from politicsTo enable ski operation under 2G conditions and thus to equate us with our Austrian neighbors. Otherwise that would be economic and ecological nonsense. "
When it comes to fighting a pandemic, the vaccination rate is crucial, incentives should be created here and a 2G regulation for winter sports / on the slopes could be a strong incentive. "Winter sports can be used as a motivational booster for vaccinations", Matthias Stauch is convinced. “A 2Gplus regulation, on the other hand, punishes all vaccinated persons.” According to the cable car industry, a threatening shadow of the absolute worst case, namely a cancellation of the winter season due to a lockdown, is already looming on the horizon.
Last year, the industry was finally canceled almost the entire 2020/21 winter season with bit by bit lockdowns. Where there are no winter sports enthusiasts, restaurants and hotels, for example, will also suffer extremely. The companies are also very concerned about the prospect of a renewed "wild influx" in the ski areas, as was the case last season. Despite the closed infrastructure and slopes, many regions were literally overrun by ski tourers, regardless of the protection against infection or nature conservation. The steering function and the controlled process through open cable cars and tow lifts are essential here. The President of the Association of German Cable Cars criticizes that the election campaign was more important than the pandemic in the summer:"We have to pay for the failures of politics again and serve as pawns," said Matthias Stauch. The cable car operators announced that they would have the legality checked.
