London gets Cable Car across Thames

The UK's first urban cable car launched Thursday over one of the world's most famous waterways - the River Thames.

Now, popular destinations like City view, Canary Wharf, historic Greenwich, the Thames Barrier and the Olympic Park can now be seen and experienced 90-meters in the air.

The new cable car features 34 cabins, which can be boarded by pedestrians, wheelchair users and cyclists from two brand-new terminals Emirates Greenwich Peninsula and Emirates Royal Docks every 30 seconds. A journey across the 1.1-kilometer cable line takes up to 10 minutes.

The Emirates cable car service will be open seven days a week and passengers can buy their boarding passes from vending machines or the ticket offices at both terminals.

Thursday morning the first official Emirates Airline cable car ride included, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson and Emirates Airline President Tim Clark, joined Peter Hendy CBE, London's Transport Commissioner.

"It is exhilarating to see the Emirates Airline take flight for the first time today," Clark told reporters. "It reflects Emirates' philosophy of connecting people through exciting, innovative and shared experiences, and will provide residents, commuters and visitors alike with a unique perspective of London."

"The Emirates Airline is a stunning addition to London's transport network, providing a much needed new connection across the Thames," Mayor Johnson said. "I am sure the Emirates Airline is now set to be a must-see destination in its own right, giving people the chance to drink in breath-taking panoramic views. Crucially, the Emirates Airline supports my ambitious plans to revive the neighboring areas, which have been neglected for decades, creating jobs for Londoners and stimulating growth."

Last October, Emirates Airline announced a sponsorship of AED $204 million (£36m) for the cable car project in an agreement between the airline, the Mayor's office and Transport for London (TfL).

Mace Macro led the main construction with a work force of 1500 people on both side sides of the river, working to deliver the newest addition to the capital's transport network. Mace Macro will employ more than 50 people to operate the scheme.

"This is an historic day for the UK and a momentous day for London," Hendy said. "The Emirates Airline has been delivered in just two years, an incredibly short amount of time for the capital's newest mode of transport to be up and running. The engineering achievements that have been delivered have been no mean feat and I'm delighted to have been on board for the first flight with the Mayor and Emirates today."

The UK is one of the most popular markets for Emirates as thousands of people takes Emirates to fly UK each year. Emirates operates eight daily flights to London and also serves Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle and Glasgow.