If you’ve been paying attention, you’ve probably noticed something problematic about the Caracas Metrocable: The stations are enormous. We’re not talking about just “big” here. We’re talking about “big enough for Cirque du Soleil to perform in.” This is because the stations themselves are not really stations at all. Whut? Exactly. In actuality, the Caracas...
Like the Medellin Metrocable, the Caracas Metrocable is a MDG system, the most basic of aerial Cable Propelled Transit technologies. It is fully-integrated into the local Metro system, has a maximum operating speed of 18 km/hr, a capacity of 3,000 pphpd and is 1.8 km long. Vehicles can carry 8 sitters and 2 standees. The...
The Caracas Metrocable, Introduction Imitation, they say, is the greatest form of flattery. And if that’s the case, then Caracas is clearly smitten with Medellin. Inspired by Medellin’s incredibly positive experience with Cable Propelled Transit, Venezuela has embarked on their own CPT campaign, beginning first in the capital city of Caracas. Like Medellin, Caracas exists...
That’s what the famous American urban planner Daniel Burnham is often-quoted as having said. Make no small plans. We teach our planning students this edict like its religion. But how many big plans, grand plans, enormous plans are ever actually realized? Few, and rarely as per the original design. Big plans are cumbersome beasts. They...
Beyond the obvious, here’s a few things I think transit should be: Free. Or close to it. Most businesses would pay millions of dollars for a captive market of individuals who predictably use the same two stations twice a day, five days a week. Transit operators should make their money not off of transit, but...
LINEA J Unlike Linea K of the Medellin Metrocable, Linea J is much more actively involved in Transit Oriented Development (TOD). Linea K served an existing and extremely dense neighborhood lacking in transit. Linea J serves the barrio of Vallejuelos and the La Aurora development that is in the process of building and expanding. This...
We interrupt our regularly-scheduled Medellin/Caracas Photo Essay with this shameless bit of self-promotion: The Mark News recently posted an interview segment on Cable Propelled Transit with myself and Dr. Eric Miller of the University of Toronto Cities Centre. Here it is: The Mark also posted a related op-ed piece I wrote on the matter. Read...
Tune in Wednesday for the start of The Gondola Project’s first photo essay: Medellin/Caracas. I’ve just returned from Medellin, Colombia and Caracas, Venezuela where I toured five of the most important systems in all of cable transit. Two of them just opened mere weeks ago. There’s so much to say, this series could go on...
I just learned of something called ‘virtual kidnappings.’ The way it works is simple: The morally suspect troll around the internet looking for evidence that a certain person (any person) is visiting a certain place at a certain time. Facebook is great for this. During that certain time, the kidnappers then contact the certain family...
So you’ve been thinking about cable and your city for a while now. You think it’s a good idea and you’re thinking of telling your boss, electorate, whomever. Here’s a few helpful hints before you do: Develop a sense of humor about yourself. If you don’t, everyone else will. Grow a thick skin. Deeply related...