A quick look at some of the things that happened this week in the world of cable cars, urban gondolas, and cable propelled transit: The Mariche Metrocable in Caracas, Venezuela is officially inaugurated. A neighbourhood blog in Seattle suggests using urban gondolas as a solution to the local “Montlake Mess” transport problem. Politicians in London...
If nothing else, the London Cable Car raises an interesting question: When should a transit line be fully fare-integrated into a transit network and when should it not. For those unfamiliar, an additional fare is required for people to ride the London Cable Car despite it, ostensibly, being a part of the overall Transport...
Just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Cable Car Day! On this very date in 1871 (that’s 141 years ago), the first cable car railway patent was bestowed upon Andrew Smith Hallidie. Legend has it that Hallidie invented the cable car after he saw a horse-drawn streetcar slip and fall on San Francisco’s steep roadways...
Despite the paranoid and near-endless calls by come columnists and pundits for economic austerity measures throughout the developed world, there are those in America calling for much-needed upgrades to that nation’s infrastructure as a way to stimulate job-creation and engage in the patriotic act of nation-building by actually building a nation. The New York Times’...
Two arguments against the current state of cable transit are the rather short line lengths of existing systems and the relatively few systems that actually exist. Both arguments suggest that urban gondola transit is not yet ready for ‘prime time.’ Fair enough. It is, however, important to remember that all technologies start out modestly. No...
Ken Murphy spent 3 1/2 days taking one photo approximately every 15 seconds of the San Francisco streetcar track replacement occurring outside his house. The following is the mind-blowing result: Church and 30th St. San Francisco MUNI Construction from Ken Murphy on Vimeo.
Back in January I posted an historical archive film of the San Francisco Cable Cars. The film is historically important for numerous reasons, not the least of which being its date. Filmed mere days before the Great Earthquake of 1906, this video stands as one of the most vivid documentations of San Francisco before the...