The cable car has its new operator

Do you remember the black and white photograph of the workers eating their sandwiches on the RCA skyscraper while it was under construction?

Well, every now and again, Giuseppe Ranzoni, the new operator of the Monteviasco cable car, will have to do something similar; not smoke a cigar while balancing high up, but carry out inspections of the cable car, even 200 metres above the ground, with the obligatory harness and safety systems.

Two hundred metres is still 200 metres, and many of the people who took part in the selection for the position opened by the “Ponte di Piero-Monteviasco” cable car, gave up.

“Yes, we did receive a lot of applications, but in the end, we concentrated our selection on about fifteen positions,” Alessio Calebasso, one of the two people in charge of the cable car, explained. “All 15 were brought onto the cars and we explained to them what they would have to do; in some cases even ‘going out’ to carry out inspections. At that point, a lot of them withdrew their applications, and the choice fell to Giuseppe.”

The new operator lives in Curiglia, and after some time “down in the valley”, he decided to return home. He recently turned fifty, and he will earn about €600 a month, a sum that is sufficient in these parts, if you live frugally and simply.

“So many of the people that replied to our advertisement didn’t even know what a cable car consisted of; this is why we decided to show them immediately what it was all about,” Calebasso explained. “We’re in front of a cable car, which has strict safety rules and has three cables: the carrier, which holds up the car, the driver, and the emergency cable, for moving the emergency car. The emergency car is part of a system that has separate and reserve power supplies, that moves the emergency car to reach the cable car, when there are problems. In light of these manoeuvers, it’s inconceivable that we would take on someone that, at a time of need, would have problems working at high altitudes.”

However, this might not be the only reason that led to final choice. Giuseppe Ranzoni is originally from Monteviasco, right where the cable car goes, he knows the valley and mountains well, he knows the routes to get to the points where there is a panoramic view, the hamlet of Piero and everything there is to see in these parts. And he knows the three restaurants, “Il Camoscio”, “Il Barchet” and “Il Vecchio Circolo”.

“That’s it; as well as operating the cable car, in the last few years, our work has also come to include giving information, explaining to tourists where they can eat and sleep, informing them of the days when the restaurants are closed,” Alessio concluded. “After all, this is what we live off, and so talking about our zone has also become part of our work.”