Posts Tagged: St. Louis

31
Jan

2012

Chicago Gondola?

The Navy Pier in Chicago is expected to undergo huge changes. $85 million so far has been allocated towards its redevelopment. Image from Chicago Tribune.

Last week, St. Louis announced that an aerial gondola was in their redevelopment plans for the Arch.

And now, according to this news source, a team of designers has also proposed an aerial gondola in Chicago. The gondola line is planned to start nearby the intersection of Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive and will glide above the congested streets of Chicago before delivering passengers to the Navy Pier.

While the gondola may not necessarily be a pure CPT and we don’t necessarily like seeing CPT used purely as toys for tourists, it is encouraging to see that the awareness of the technology is increasing and catching on.

If anyone has photos or additional information on this, we love to see it! Thanks goes out to Patricia for sending along the link to this.



Want more? Purchase Cable Car Confidential: The Essential Guide to Cable Cars, Urban Gondolas & Cable Propelled Transit and start learning about the world's fastest growing transportation technologies.

27
Jan

2012

Weekly Roundup

Just some dude climbing on a cable 3491m long. No biggie. Grimselwelt Mountains, Switzerland. Image from Dailymail.co.uk.

It’s been a busy week here at the Gondola Project. So let’s take a quick look at some of the highlights from around the world of Urban Gondolas, Gondola Transit, and Cable Propelled Transit.

 



Want more? Purchase Cable Car Confidential: The Essential Guide to Cable Cars, Urban Gondolas & Cable Propelled Transit and start learning about the world's fastest growing transportation technologies.

20
Apr

2011

Is Gondola Transit Crossing The Rubicon?

Right now, there are two groups looking at urban gondola transit solutions: Developing World cities and Developed World cities. Pretty broad classification, I know, but bear with me.

Curiously, in the Developed World the technology gets little attention from the public sector. Typically it’s the private sector that pushes these systems as little more than touristic attractions. Sure there are exceptions like the Burnaby Mountain proposal in Vancouver, but the proposed Hamburg and St. Louis gondolas are more typical examples.

And yet in the Developing World, governments are all over the technology. This is where the technology’s major growth is coming from. As we’ve said before, the growth in South America is awe-inspiring.

Then there are the hybrids; those systems like the London Cable Car (Gondola) that have been spearheaded by the government but will be paid for by the private sector (presumably).

As I’ve argued before, the London Cable Car (Gondola) isn’t going to be a watershed moment for cable transit. But it may very well be the system that allows cable to cross from being seen in the eyes of western governments as nothing more than a Toy for Tourists and being viewed as fully-integrated parts of their local transit network.

This could very likely be the system that allows cable to cross the Rubicon into respectability and allow the industry to fully realize its first Medellin-esque “silver-bullet” system in the Developed World.

We’ll soon find out; the London Cable Car (Gondola) will be open in just over a year’s time.



Want more? Purchase Cable Car Confidential: The Essential Guide to Cable Cars, Urban Gondolas & Cable Propelled Transit and start learning about the world's fastest growing transportation technologies.