Schauinslandbahn The Schauinslandbahn is a gondola lift in the Black Forest area of Baden - Württemberg , Germany . It links a lower station in the municipality of Horben , near the city of Freiburg im Breisgau , with an upper station near the summit of the Schauinsland mountain . The line is operated by VAG Freiburg , the city transport operator for Freiburg . The same company operates that city ' s tram and bus network , including bus route 21 that links the lower station of the Schauinslandbahn to the terminus of tram route 2 at Günterstal . At in length , the line is reportedly the longest gondola lift in Germany . It was the first suspended cable car in the world to provide continuous operation of multiple cabins , as opposed to the shuttle style operation of the aerial tramway . History . In the first years of the 20th century , several proposals were made to link Freiburg to Schauinsland . The extension of city tram route 2 on segregated track to Günterstal in 1913 was intended as the first section of a high speed tramway that would connect with a proposed rack railway to the mountain ' s summit . Other proposals included an aerial cableway , proposed by Professor Georg Benoit of the University of Karlsruhe , and a much longer adhesion railway from Freiburg Hauptbahnhof via Schauinsland to Todtnau . The outbreak of the First World War stopped any further progress on these plans . After the war it was eventually decided to build a suspended cable car line from a point close to the intended start point of the previously planned rack railway . The line was privately built and owned , opening on 17 July 1930 after three years of construction . It was built to Professor Benoit ' s design , using one carrying cable and two traction cables . There were 10 cabins , a maximum of 8 of which could be used at any time , and each cabin carried up to 22 passengers and a conductor . The design of the line involved cabins being attached at the stations onto the cables . In 1932 , a mistake by the conductor when hitching the cabin onto the cable led to a cabin dropping and killing 2 passengers and the conductor . This led to a major review of the technology and the procedures guiding it ; the resulting recommendations were rapidly included in ropeway construction elsewhere , especially in Switzerland . During the Second World War , the Schauinslandbahn was used to provide transport to military hospital s established on the Schauinsland mountain . Because of the danger of air attack during 1944 and 1945 , the line was operated only at night . The line was acquired by the city of Freiburg in 1968 , and merged into VAG in 1982 . In 1987 , the line closed for modernisation . The original cabins were replaced by 37 smaller cabins that did not require a conductor , thus significantly reducing the number of staff needed to operate the line . During periods of high demand , up to 30 cabins can operate at once , giving a total passenger throughput of more than 500 per hour . Several proposals have been made to complete the originally intended extension of tram route 2 to connect with the Schauinslandbahn , but this has never happened and through passengers still use a connecting bus . Operation . The line operates seven days a week throughout the year . It runs continuously from 0900 to 1700 , with later service from July to September . The line is not included in VAG ' s normal tram and bus tariff , and the adult return fare is currently €12 , with reduced fares for children and families . The line has the following technical parameters :