Yurikamome - 15km elevated AGT system - in Tokyo. Notice how the transit line blends into the surrounding urban fabric - almost making it appear invisible.

Elevated infrastructure can elicit different responses and reactions from cities and communities. Some find a gap in the underutilized spaces below a structure (such as with the boxing ring built under the Sao Paulo highway) while others enjoy the convenience of well-planned, multi-layered cities. For the latter let us turn to Japan.

The Yurikamome (aka Black Headed Seagull) is a 15km elevated AGT line built in the Odaiba and Shiodome districts of Tokyo, Japan. The districts are home to several important commercial, residential and touristed-oriented building and considered one of the most modern areas in the city. (In fact, Obaida was first redeveloped in the 1990s as part of a showcase of futuristic living.) Today, the districts have some of the most visually stunning mixtures of architecture, urban design and transit planning in the world. Check it out:

Obaida, Tokyo in Japan.

Shiodome, Tokyo in Japan

For more photos, click here and here. 

The built form is immaculate and in some ways, rather surreal — as though it was plucked straight out of a science fiction film. The Yurikamome’s design is no different and in my opinion, the elevated transit infrastructure and stations are some of the most beautiful examples of above grade transport in the world.

Elevated station, tracks and train. Notice how the different layers of transport connections are all melded together making multi-modalism simple and easy.

The Yurikamome is a vital piece of rapid transit in Shiodome and Obaida.

Station interior within Yurikamome. Bright lighting and platform doors ensure safety for passengers.

It is incredible how the stations and tracks all appear to be seamlessly integrated and blend into the existing urban fabric. This serves as solid evidence for elevated infrastructure, that if planned and designed properly, can be built to enhance the cityscape. As with the case of gondolas, successful elevated system designs can provide strategies and best practices that will guide future city-builders as they continue to create and construct urban transit solutions.

An underground boxing ring in Sao Paulo, Brazil. A unique human layer that brings into perspective the beauty (and tragedy) that sometimes exist in many developing cities. Image by Nacho Doce.

In the past, we’ve discussed the implications of creating aesthetically-pleasing elevated infrastructure (recall the Ranstadrail and Most Beautiful Elevated Transport Infrastructure). While these examples exemplify the capabilities of planned transit infrastructure, I believe informal uses (and their spinoff effects) may deserve a little more attention.

One of the most inspiring case studies that I’ve come across is Sao Paulo’s underground boxing gym, located beneath the Alcantara Machado viaduct. This training academy was started by a former boxer, Nilson Garrido, as an attempt to help disadvantaged youth. Although Garrido’s pupils train with rudimentary equipment (tires, rocks, plastic containers), their dedication to the sport and their tenacity appears relentless.

Training facility located adjacent to highway overpass in Sao Paulo. Image by Nacho Doce.

I think this type of ad-hoc urbanism is a testament to human ingenuity and adaptability — one that is often unaccounted for and ignored by modern North American city-building principles. In other words, it begs the question: How many unique uses of urban space are lost when planners and decision-makers are confined to stagnant and outdated zoning laws?

For more photos, click here.

A gondola proposal in Winnipeg is estimated to cost $33 million. Image by CBC.

Let’s take a quick look at some of the highlights from around the world of Urban Gondolas, Gondola Transit, and Cable Propelled Transit.

• In Winnipeg, Canada, the city is looking at several active transportation crossing ideas for the Red River. The options include several pedestrian and cycling bridges and a gondola system. The cable car idea was initially proposed as early as 2008.
• If you happen to be in the Calgary next week and want to learn more about urban gondolas, Steven Dale, in collaboration with Calgary’s Centre City, will be presenting a talk called, Urban Gondolas: Just one piece of the transportation pie is happening at Fort Calgary (750 9th Ave. SE)  on Wednesday February 15th between noon and 1 p.m.
• Continuing the ongoing movement and discussion of Canadian gondolas, the Sea to Sky Gondola proposal in Squamish, Canada gets its first government approval as amendments were made to several key planning documents.

So what happens when a city’s simply got no space?

They deal.

Take New York City, for example. The Roosevelt Island Tram’s been dealing with this problem for 35 years by building a tower right over a road. Of course they did, because the system has three towers, two of which are located in Manhattan, the most densely populated New York City borough and the country’s densest county.

The Roosevelt Tram tower sits right on top of 60th St. -- CC image by Flickr user David Berkowitz.

Then there’s a system in Romania, where the city of Piatra Neamt built a cable car system, of which an entire kilometer traverses the city — towers and all.

To do this they built a tower in a road median . . .

Image courtesy of Doppelmayr.

. . . one over a parking lot . . .

Image courtesy of Doppelmayr.

. . . and even one on top of a sidewalk, so as not to obstruct pedestrian traffic underneath.

Image courtesy of Doppelmayr.

Now, we’re not saying this is the best way to go about designing towers. Remember, there are practical designs and then there are pretty designs.

London and Portland have the aesthetics down pat. Both cities dedicated a lot of thought and effort (not to mention a few dollars) to create stunning architectural towers, and in return have (or will soon have) practical works of art, so to speak.

But the adaptability seen in New York and Piatra Neamt should not go unnoticed either. As drab and industrial as the tower designs are, they represent a collaboration that can exist between municipalities and transit planning when both parties add a bit of imagination and ingenuity to the mix.

The important question here is how to blend the practicality of New York and Piatra Neamt with the beauty of London and Portland. That’s the challenge and the opportunity.

A Chicago lakefront gondola would connect many of the city's lakefront attractions while giving riders a great view of the skyline, Lake Michigan, and the parks below.

The idea for the Chicago Lakefront Gondola came from an article in the Chicago Tribune about various design ideas for Navy Pier. (It was posted on the Gondola Project just last week, here).

**In case you missed it, the post discussed a gondola proposal for Navy Pier, which was an element of the Navy Pier Redesign project presented by Aedas Architecture / Davis Brody Bond / Martha Schwartz Partners. Here is an image of their pier rendering, gondola (the Pier Pod) included.

Of course, as a Chicago native and total gondola nerd, I took this news to heart and quickly started imagining what a Navy Pier gondola would entail. The article described a design that would run all the way to Michigan Avenue, presumably along the Chicago River, and I thought cool — a connection, along the water, to a super touristy spot in the city. Makes sense.

But then I kept thinking about this idea and realized that the gondola could extend all the way downtown, to the El, Millennium Park, Grant Park, and the Art Institute. This is a spot popular with Chicagoans, too. Of course, if a gondola is going to go into Grant Park, why not keep it going all the way to Museum Campus, or Soldier Field, or heck, even McCormick Place. The only way I know how to reach those places is by walking or driving (and there’s a bus).

So yes, the Navy Pier gondola would be a nice touch to the city’s tourist sector — a short point-to-point system with bright colored cabins. But why stop there? Cable can do more. Multi-station lines are being installed in cities around the world, providing cost-effective, fast, and efficient transit options. Chicago is home to more than 2.5 million people. It also happens to have one of the greatest urban lakefronts in the world, where anyone can enjoy the parks and trails, gardens and skyline, museums and music. What if the Chicago Gondola proposal stretched beyond Navy Pier, connecting all of these leisure spaces and creating a unified waterfront network for everyone to enjoy?

Right now, we’ve got the El (city rail) and Metra (commuter rail) which serve the Greater Chicago Area. Yet, efforts to develop the lakefront as a place of outdoor recreation, leisure, and landscaping — a public lakefront — have left this area greatly disconnected from the main public transit lines in the city. (Plus the surrounding roads are either too busy to cross in most places, or get shut down all through out the summer for various festivals and events.)

To compensate, bus services operate to and from the Loop. But while the lakefront and its cultural and entertainment sites run north/south most of the bus routes travel primarily along east/west routes, leaving gaps between the various attractions themselves.

A complete transit solution should benefit both tourists and locals alike, while still maintaining the area as “Chicago’s Front Yard.” This could be accomplished with a gondola system that would not require additional roads and would function free of traffic restrictions. It would even become a destination point.

Click for larger image (pdf)

As discussed, there are 6 key areas east of the downtown Loop, along Lake Michigan, that could readily be linked by a gondola system. This gondola could run from Navy Pier, moving inland and south to the Millennium and Grant Parks which are close to the train lines, and then south east towards the museums, stadium, and convention center.

The first stop en route would be at Navy Pier.

THE STATIONS

[Legend: Red star for gondola stations, Orange Line for gondola route, Green Circle for attraction entrances, Purple dashed line for walking paths/sidewalks]

Navy Pier draws more tourists than any other site in Illinois and is the number one tourist attraction in Chicago.

Navy Pier is the largest tourist attraction in the state of Illinois. It is also a hub for cruise and dinner ships, home to a popular theater and children’s museum and host of numerous artistic and commercial events as well as a large employer in the city. The pier is accessible by car, bus, bike, and foot. Geographically separated from the city it is natural anchor for the gondola system.

With the new addition of the Modern Wing and BP pedestrian bridge, these city landmarks are intertwined, drawing crowds of all ages and interests, from both near and far.

From there, the system would move along the scenic lakefront to Millennium Park and the Art Institute of Chicago. Millennium Park is the City’s newest downtown jewel. Located above a railyard and parking lot, it is technically one of the largest green roofs in the world. The park itself contains many attractions, ranging from the giant Bean sculpture (Cloud Gate) to a large ampitheatre which holds free concerts all summer long. A pedestrian bridge within Millennium Park leads directly into the new Modern Wing at the Art Institute, the second largest art museum in the country. This area is located within walking distance of the EL and Metra.

Other attractions within Grant Park include Buckingham Fountain, sports and concert venues, as well as the many summer festivals held in the space each year.

The next stop could be at the western edge of Grant Park, a 319 acre urban park which is located in the center of Chicago, next to the Loop (Chicago’s central business district) and stretches all the way to Lake Michigan. In the summer it is the center of numerous festivals, including Taste of Chicago and Lollapalooza, which transform the park into a world stage. A station at the west side of the park would connect riders to the trains and downtown before launching them on a cruise directly above the parks and the festivities below.

The southern end of the trip connects to the Museum Campus — home to the Field Museum, Shedd Aquarium, and Adler Planetarium — as well as to Soldier Field and McCormick Place. Farthest away from the city center, Museum Campus and Soldier Field are also the most inaccessible to the train lines, with the exception of the South Shore Line and Metra Electric, only one of eleven Metra systems in the metropolitan area.

Museum Campus is frequented by visitors and students daily.

Museum Campus is composed of the Field Museum of Natural History, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Adler Planetarium. The entire campus was recently redesigned to include pedestrian friendly pathways and landscaping. It covers 57 acres in total.

Soldier Field is home turf for the Chicago Bears and is also used for other large outdoor sporting and music events.

Soldier Field, home to the Chicago Bears, is a large, 65,000 person stadium. Other than the NFL the stadium hosts many other large scale events such as outdoor concerts and soccer matches.

McCormick Place, located at the end of the line, hosts conventions and trade shows year round.

McCormick Place is the largest convention center in the United States. It is home to many conventions, meetings, and trade shows every year, including the Chicago Auto Show. The site is composed of several buildings and connects directly to the South Shore Metra line.

LINKING WITH EXISTING THE TRANSIT NETWORK

The Gondola and Existing Transit Network

The Chicago Lakefront Gondola would add to the city’s existing fixed transit network, by linking existing attractions to each other and the downtown EL (CTA) and Metra lines.

The nearest Metra line stops near both Millennium and Grant Parks, as well as Soldier Field and McCormick Place. This route serves areas to the south and east, both within the city and beyond.
For the rest of the city an easy transfer to the CTA EL trains would be highly beneficial. Currently Navy Pier and the southern most attractions – Museum Campus, Soldier Field, and McCormick Place – are located a considerable distance from the nearest El station.

The gondola system’s key transfer areas to the CTA would be at the Millennium Park and Grant Park stations. These stations, although within the park, are within a 5 minute walking distance of several EL platforms for multiple lines, providing an easy link to the rest of Chicago.

For those visitors who will drive to the lakefront, large parking facilities are located at Soldier Field, Millennium Park, and Navy Pier. The gondola connection would allow drivers to park in one place and to quickly and easily reach multiple destinations.

A UNIFIED CHICAGO LAKEFRONT

A fixed transit cable link connecting these six areas would unify Chicago’s downtown lakefront, increasing accessibility while at the same time drawing more people to the area. Visitors arriving by car could park in one location while still having easy, family-friendly access to a much larger area of the city. Those arriving by El or train could travel to the museums, football stadium, and Navy Pier without the hassle of city traffic or shuttle schedules. Conventioneers and vendors would be able to move quickly from the McCormick Place commercial environment to cultural and entertainment sites. With the elevated views, riders would experience Lake Michigan to the east and the beauty of one of the world’s most recognizable skylines to the west.

CC Photo used in Grant Park gondola render from Flickr user Wajimacallit

Now before we get all excited, there’s a few major caveats here:

• Despite the fact that studies have been done and territorial plan changes made, the authorities in question don’t have the money to realize the project. This suggests that a private company is going to have to come in to finance the deal in some sort of Private Public Partnership. We know this because the system will be operated by the local transit authority.

• Given a reported speed of 7-10 metres per second and two 60-person cabins, we can assume this to be an Aerial Tram. Why an Aerial Tram was selected instead of a Gondola-based system is not discussed. We can assume there will be no intermediate stations.

• Political opponents of the system claim it will adversely effect the environment and is nothing more than a diversion away from issues of embezzling of public funds. No evidence is given to support either claim.

The Kiel Harbour Gondola (Stadtseilbahn, Kiel). Image via wikimedia.

I’d like to point you to a tiny CPT that once operated in my hometown Kiel (Germany), as it seems there are no English sources about it and it might be of interest for you.

It was a landmark and attraction in town as it was quite unique. It was installed by the owner of a department store to make a parking garage, that was located on the other side of the Old Harbour, more accessible. It spanned an enormous distance of ~140 meters, had two gondolas for 15 people each and one journey took about 70 seconds.

I suppose its one of the earliest urban CPT’s. It was opened in 1974 and transported nearly 3 Mio. people until it was closed in 1991 for financial reasons, although many people and the city tried to change the new owner’s mind. As it was free, it was quite popular: there are reports of 50m long queues at certain times.

But in the end the owner didn’t want to replace the old cable. And the staff costs were probably to high for the owner, as there was some sort of “cabin boy” aboard.

Thanks so much for this, Jan!

As so many of our readers are from German-speaking countries, it would be great if some of them could help gather more details on this system. Please put any information you find in the comments.