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		After opening the 8-person gondola rose effortlessly through the air. The Mt. Moiwa 3-line rotation style ropeway first began operation in 1958. Climbing over 10 steel towers, the ropeway rose a vertical 366 meters (1200 feet) and traversed a length of 1200 meters (3973 feet), with the thirty small 8-person gondolas departing every minute. The Sanroku (mountain base) Station used to be connected to the Nakagoro (mid-mountain) Station by a short 10-minute ride. At that time, it appears that the gondolas required a push by hand to get started.
In 1971, in preparation for the Sapporo Winter Olympics, the ropeway was made safer with a 4-line transport style system. With two 66-person gondolas, it also raised the sensational aspect of the ride, however, the gondolas in those days were an unpainted, bare silver color. The trip took 5 minutes, halving the travel time. Also between 1970 (Showa 45) -1972 (Showa 47), there was an amusement park and a pool next to the Ropeway Station. These became popular play areas where the laughter of children could always be heard. Later, in 1995(Heisei 7) the gondola was redesigned and painted a bright rainbow color. In the future it will continue to play an active part in sightseeing in Sapporo.		In 1971 the 66-person gondola first began service increasing both passenger capacity and comfort.
There was a Ropeway amusement park next to Mt. Moiwa Ropeway Sanroku Station. It was popular amongst families. A photo of the Summit Observation Platform when it first opened. The roads had not yet been paved. The small building on the right was where you boarded the lift.