Canillo Cable Car Project Stalled by Holdout Landowners' Refusal

Jordi Alcobé, Canillo's major councilor, confirmed on Tuesday that the parish council has reached agreements with six of the eight affected landowners for the proposed cable car linking the parish to the Armiana area via Pont Tibetà, but the project remains stalled without consent from the remaining two—or possibly three, according to some reports—who refuse to grant overflight rights.

The council plans to formalize land cession and overflight agreements with the six supportive owners at upcoming meetings, Alcobé said. Only then will it resume negotiations with the holdouts, whose opposition centers on mechanical structures near their properties. "We want to move forward with the others and, once they are more or less settled, resume conversations to see if there is a meeting point," he explained.

Alcobé acknowledged that unanimous approval is essential, as the planned route is the most direct option with minimal private land impact. Without it, construction cannot proceed. "All are necessary to make it possible," he told reporters after a council session.

The opponents' stance remains firm, with no recent meetings held, though the council views consensus as its duty. Alcobé rejected financial motives, noting money was never discussed. Instead, he framed the issue as perceptual: owners do not want infrastructure nearby, despite its economic upside. He cited cable cars in Encamp and La Massana, where initial resistance has given way to recognized benefits, and projected 150,000 annual visitors to the area, alongside urban planning concessions to enhance property values.

Each property faces unique logistics—proximity to roads, avalanche risks, overflight heights—preventing direct comparisons, Alcobé added. The council maintains the route maximizes communal land while minimizing private effects and avoids existing buildings. Reports varied slightly on the number of objectors, with two cited in most accounts and three in one.