The services of the 1.8-km-long Guwahati-North Guwahati river ropeway over the Brahmaputra was suspended on Wednesday, two days after it was commissioned with the objective of boosting tourism and reducing travel time between the two banks.

Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) sources attributed the suspension of the services of India’s longest river ropeway to an electrical problem triggered by voltage fluctuation. Those in charge of its maintenance said it was a “small issue which they were trying to resolve at the earliest”.

Another source said that as most machine parts are from Switzerland, it may take some time if the malfunctioning parts were to be replaced. “Our technical team is working on it,” he said.

Before services came to a standstill on Wednesday, over 480 commuters had travelled from the south bank to the north and 165 from the north to the south on Tuesday. “We made 37 trips from one end, starting at 8.20am and finising at 5.40pm on August 25,” a GMDA source said.

The ropeway has two cabins and each cabin has the capacity to ferry 32 people, including the operators. It can ferry 250 persons an hour, with the one-way fare fixed at Rs 60 and two-way at Rs 100.

However, only 15 passengers could avail of the ride one way because of the pandemic-triggered social distancing norms. It takes around 8 minutes to cross the river.

Costing over Rs 56 crore, the bi-cable ropeway has been constructed by Samir Damodar Ropeways, a joint venture company between Damodar Ropeways and G.L. Construction, under the supervision of the GMDA.

Gangloff Cabin, Switzerland, is the cabin designer and supplier while the carriage and rescue system is by Garaventa AG, Switzerland.

Garaventa AG also issued the safety certificate.

The joint venture company is in charge of operation and maintenance while the GMDA looks after ticketing.