Metrocable (Medellín)

Metrocable is a gondola lift system implemented by the City Council of Medellín, Colombia, with the purpose of providing a transportation service that complements the Medellín Metro. It was designed to reach some of the city's informal settlements on the steep hills that mark its topography. It is largely considered to be the first cable-propelled urban transit system in South America. The transportation infrastructure has been in service since 2004.

For some decades before its inception, there were plans for some form of transportation that took into account the challenging topography of the region. These ideas date back to the use of cable-car technology for exporting coffee (Manizales - Mariquita Cableway) starting in the 1930s between the city of Manizales, south of Medellín, and the Cauca River 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) below. In its modern incarnation, Metrocable was the result of a joint effort between the city's elected mayor, Luis Pérez Gutiérrez, and the Metro Company. For some, the initial conception of the system was indirectly inspired by the Caracas Aerial Tramway (also known as the Mount Avila Gondola), which was designed in the 1950s primarily to carry passengers to a luxury hotel.

Line K of the Metrocable, connecting the Medellín River valley to the steep hills in comunas (districts) 1 and 2, was the first system in the world dedicated to public transport, with a fixed service schedule. Since starting operations in 2004, it carries 30,000 people daily and is operationally integrated into the rest of Medellín's mass transit system (SITVA), which includes the overground Metro, the bus rapid transit system (BRT), and a tramway line (opened in 2016).

As of 2021, the Medellín Metrocable system has six lines: Line H, Line J, Line K, Line L (Cable Arvi), Line M, and Line P. Overall, the system has been received with enthusiasm by locals, who are mainly low-income users and are prepared to queue for up to 45 minutes at peak times to use it. There are a rapidly growing number of similar systems in other cities in Latin America (such as Metrocable (Caracas), Mi Teleférico (La Paz), Manizales, Cali, TransMiCable (Bogotá), Mexicable near Mexico City) and elsewhere.