The Singapore Cable Car is a gondola lift system that connects the mainland of Singapore to Sentosa. Inaugurated on 15 February 1974 by former Deputy Prime Minister Goh Keng Swee, it was one of the earliest development projects of Sentosa to be completed.
The cable car was designed as both an attraction and a means of transportation to and from Sentosa. Its construction was overseen by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA), with the cable car system supplied by the Swiss company Von Roll.
The first 10 months of its operation saw the cable car draw some 750,000 passengers, who enjoyed panoramic views of Telok Blangah, Keppel Harbour as well as Sentosa, and the Southern Islands. The first iteration of the system saw passengers boarding the cable cars at Mount Faber or at Jardine Steps (now HarbourFront) on the mainland, before taking the aerial journey to Carlton Hill on Sentosa.
On 29 January 1983, the derrick of the drilling ship Eniwetok became ensnared with the cableway. The impact dislodged two cable cars into the sea, with the only passenger to survive being an infant saved from drowning by PSA marine assistant Abdul Latip Jantan. A nine-hour rescue operation was mounted and remaining passengers stranded on the cableway were rescued by two military helicopters. After months of repairs and thorough safety testing, the cable car system returned to operation in August 1983.
In 2015, an expansion of the cable car route saw new stations added at the former Merlion Plaza, Mount Imbiah and Fort Siloso, providing aerial views of Sentosa’s forests, coastline, and attractions.
Explore the Suggested Short Trail Routes:
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Kampong and Barracks, 2 hours with public transport, 3km
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Forts, 2 hours on foot, 4km
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Memories of Sentosa, 1 hour on foot, 2.5km
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