Excellent article in Outside magazine addressing various chairlift issues and maintenance across the country, with a couple of in-depth sections on the accident at Timberline. Interesting, if sober, reading:

http://www.outsideonline.com/2069911/your-local-chairlift-could-kill-you

One thing that struck me is when they said something to the effect that the insurers are not as concerned with safety as with being able to collect enough premiums to cover the losses. Sounds expensive.

Business always knows best. Let the market sort it out. If we could get the arilines to go back to voluntary standards the fares would finally come back down.

"For decades, ski resorts have resisted calls for greater governmental oversight, arguing that their voluntary standards and self-inspections are rigorous enough."

That outdoor online article is a bit chicken little but I still think there is an accident waiting to happen in states that don't have standards for inspecting vertical transport/tramways/chairifts.

from SAM.

http://www.saminfo.com/headline-news/8725-outside-online-article-questions-aging-lift-infrastructure

To be sure, the two lift incidents examined in the article, at Sugarloaf in 2010 and at Timberline, W.V., last winter, show the need for vigilance with older lifts. But they do not signal the imminent catastrophic failure of hundreds, or even a handful, of lifts across the country