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Sep 03, 2015
Case Studies, Infrastructure

Decaying Rail to Profitable Trail: Lessons From Walkway Over the Hudson

  OVERVIEW As an urban planner, I love coming across unique examples of transport infrastructure when I visit a city. The Walkway Over The Hudson (WOTH), a former steel rail bridge turned pedestrian path, is a great example of one of those instances. The bridge has a fascinating history and is a great example of how elevated...

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Jul 06, 2015
History, Infrastructure, Research Issues

Why Doesn’t the Industry Keep Better Records?

Ropeway systems have continually demonstrated their ability to adapt to strange new environments. From the mighty rivers of rural China to the stacked vertical density of New York, it seems nothing is insurmountable. No doubt this flexibility is a main reason why we see more and more of urban gondolas being proposed and built. And...

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Jan 21, 2015
Infrastructure, Thoughts

Temporary Cable Cars: Where Are They Now?

One of the biggest advantages of CPT technology, is that it’s relatively easy to relocate a system, or parts of a system, to another location — sometimes for an entirely different purpose. While it’s not unheard of to see decommissioned subway cars get recycled (the TTC in Toronto recently sent some cars to Nigeria), you can...

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Oct 28, 2014
History, Infrastructure

Military Cable Cars

Guest post by Ross Edgar. Over the years, the Gondola Project has discussed numerous different applications of Cable Propelled Transit (CPT), highlighting the versatility and adaptability of such technology. However, one particular avenue of CPT remains largely unexplored: military cable systems. Military applications of CPT do not readily spring to mind, yet in Alpine nations...

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Oct 22, 2014
Aerobus, Infrastructure

Aerobus: Ahead of Its Time?

We may have posted this video earlier but recently there has been some comments about the Aerobus which made me revisit the technology. — — Based off some quick Google searches, it seems like it has been awhile since anyone online has given Aerobus the time of day. The last news article mentioned that a few developments were made...

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Aug 26, 2014
Infrastructure, Proposals & Concepts

Beach, Mountains and City

Post by Mauricio Miranda. The Caracas Metrocable is expanding again, and the result promises to be spectacular. The planned 10-km line, which will connect Caracas with the northern state of Vargas, offers riders the possibility of travelling to three different landscapes—the beach, mountains, and the city—during the approximately 45-minute trip. The main objective of this...

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Mar 10, 2014
Infrastructure

Reclaiming Space Underneath Elevated Roads in Guangzhou, China

Elevated transport infrastructure, if improperly designed and implemented, has the potential to create huge visual obstructions in a neighbourhood. And this fact was quite apparent while I was vacationing this last winter in Guangzhou, China. After visiting family and friends, I noticed that a lot of elevated highways and tracks were built with little regard...

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Mar 04, 2014
Infrastructure

Temporary Gondolas / Ropeways (Construction and Goods Delivery)

Aside from being great transport systems for cities and ski hills, did you know that cable cars are fantastic tools for construction and goods delivery? Unfortunately, this is one side of ropeway technology that many city folk rarely get to see. Not only are they quick, and easy to set up, their footprints are small...

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Nov 26, 2013
Infrastructure, Oddities

Vizcaya (“Hanging”) Bridge: Half Gondola, Half Bridge, 100% Awesomeness

Ever wonder what happens when you crossbreed a bridge and a gondola? Well if infrastructure could reproduce, it’d probably look a lot like the Vizcaya Bridge in Northern Spain. — First designed and constructed in 1893 with the latest 19th century building techniques, this 45m high and 160m long transporter bridge has been ferrying passengers across the Nervión...

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May 29, 2013
Design Considerations, Infrastructure

Cabin Design: A Blast from the Past – UFO Style Cabins

Today as there are basically only two major CPT consortiums left, general observations seems to indicate that cabin designs are rather limited — especially in urban MDG systems. While current passenger carriers are both functional and practical, it appears that most (not all) urban MDGs built by Doppelmayr and Leitner/Poma typically feature the Omega style...

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