Part 1 and Part 2 of this series discussed many of the pros to combining CPT with Transit Oriented Development (TOD). Today we’ll consider one of the major arguments against cable transit — security concerns, and how smart design and planning can help mitigate these issues. Gondolas may pass alongside private property, even when traveling...
Consider the common airplane and it’s absurd carry-on baggage situation: Airline policy (at least according to their safety videos) is for passengers to store their heavier carry-on luggage below the seat in front of them and the lighter articles in the overhead compartment. This is, apparently, for your own safety. But have you ever been...
Julia passes on a link to the Venezia Cable Car which reveals how that city is dealing with the visual pollution of elevated transit infrastructure. It’s pretty brilliant: As we’ve argued and demonstrated before, elevated infrastructure need not be ugly – and there’s absolutely no reason we can’t do something with gondola tower infrastructure.
Last week’s post about the Randstadrail and elevated infrastructure (both track and station) generated a few comments and a fair bit of email. Most interesting were the number of emails we received from people pointing out beautiful elevated systems around the world. Without fail, these were systems or installations we’d never ever heard of. With...
How does cable deal with high-capacity rushes? Say, after concerts and at sporting events? Or in the peak of rush hour traffic? Well that depends on a few things: What is the capacity of the system in question? If the system in question needs 4,500 pphpd at peak and you’ve built a 3,000 pphpd then lineups...
Is transit about form or function? For the last couple of weeks that has very much been the debate over at Human Transit (here, here and here); Form, in the guise of “fun” and “glamour” has been characterized as an unnecessary frill that caters mostly to tourists. Function (“usefulness” and “availability), meanwhile has been cast...
Calgary, Alberta, Canada is a city of around 1 million people. It’s the financial centre of Canada’s petrol economy and is very, very cold. Average temperatures range from a low of -15°C (5°F) to a high of 10°C (49°F). Calgarians are therefore blessed with a network of elevated walkways called the Plus 15 System. This...
This is the Baden Gondelbahn in Baden, Switzerland. It is a concept by Stephan Kalt, director of Regional Transport for Baden-Wettingen. Kalt’s concept connects the spa town of Baden with a local train station via Urban Gondola.
2,500 hundred years ago a Greek sculptor crafts an enormous statue of the goddess Athena out of gold and ivory. They need to build a roof to shield her from the elements. So how do you build a roof that large that long ago?