The Walt Disney World Monorail

A monorail is a metro or railroad with a track consisting of a single rail (actually a beam), as opposed to the traditional track with two parallel rails. Monorail vehicles are wider than the beam they run on. This work is copyrighted. ... This work is copyrighted. ... The Walt Disney World Monorail Track map of the monorail (and the Magic Kingdom Railroad) The Walt Disney World Monorail System is a monorail system for rapid transit at the Walt Disney World vacation and recreation resort in Bay Lake, Florida, USA. One of the most famous symbols of Walt... This page refers to urban rail mass transit systems. ... This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ... Railroad or railway tracks are used on railways, which, together with railroad switches (points), guide trains without the need for steering. ...

Types and technical aspects

There are two main types of monorail systems. In suspended monorails, the train is located under the track, suspended from above. In the more popular straddle-beam monorail, the train straddles the rail, covering it on the sides. The straddle-beam style was popularized by ALWEG. There is also a form of suspended monorail developed by SAFEGE that places the wheels inside the rail. In rail transport, a train consists of a single or several connected rail vehicles that are capable of being moved together along a guideway to transport freight or passengers from one place to another along a planned route. ... ALWEG was a transportation company known for pioneering straddle-beam monorails. ... The SAFEGE monorail system was developed in France. ...

Modern monorails are powered by electric motors and generally have tires, instead of metal wheels which are found on subway, streetcar (tram), and light rail trains. These wheels roll along the top and sides of the rail to propel and stabilize the train. Most modern monorail systems employ switches to move cars between multiple lines or permit two-way travel. Some early monorail systems--notably the suspended monorail of Wuppertal (Germany), dating from 1901 and still in operation--have a design that makes it difficult to switch from one line to another. This limitation of the Wuppertal monorail still comes up at times in discussions of monorails despite that fact for both the suspended and straddle-beam type monorails the problem has been overcome. Electric motors of various sizes. ... Firestone tire A tire (US spelling) or tyre (UK spelling) is a roughly toroidal piece of (usually) rubber placed on a wheel to cushion it. ... This article describes subways as mass transit lines. ... a historic postcard showing electric trolley-powered streetcars in Richmond, Virginia, where Frank J. Sprague successfully demonstrated his new system on the hills in 1888 A streetcar is a railway vehicle designed to carry passengers on tracks, usually laid in city streets. ... This article is about light rail systems in general. ... Double switch A railroad switch (known in British and Australian English as (a set of) points or, in technical usage, a turnout) is a mechanical installation provided at a point where rail track A divides into two tracks B and C. It can be set in either of two positions... Wuppertal is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ... 1901 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Advantages and disadvantages

Sydney Monorail

Advantages: View of the Sydney monorail from the top. ... View of the Sydney monorail from the top. ...

• The primary advantage of monorails over conventional rail systems is that they require minimal space, both horizontally and vertically. The width required is determined by the monorail vehicle, not the track, and monorail systems are commonly elevated, requiring only a minimal footprint for support pillars.
• Due to a smaller footprint they are more attractive than conventional elevated rail lines and visually block only a minimal amount of sky.
• They are quieter, as modern monorails use rubber wheels on a concrete track
• Monorails are capable of climbing, descending and turning faster than most conventional rail systems.
• Monorails are safer than many forms of at-grade transportation, since the monorail wraps around its track and thus cannot derail and unlike a light rail system, there is minimal risk of colliding with traffic or pedestrians
• They cost less to construct and maintain, especially when compared to underground metro systems.

The Disneyland Monorail

Disadvantages: For other uses, see Sky (disambiguation). ... This page refers to urban rail mass transit systems. ... Disneyland monorail over mermaid lagoon Taken by Elf | Talk 22:30, 5 May 2004 (UTC) September 2002. ... Disneyland monorail over mermaid lagoon Taken by Elf | Talk 22:30, 5 May 2004 (UTC) September 2002. ...

• Monorails require their own guideway.
• While a monorail's footprint is less than an elevated conventional rail system, it is larger than an underground system's.
• A monorail switch by its very design will leave one track hanging in mid-air at any given time. Unlike in the case of regular rail switches, coming from this track may well cause derailing, with the additional risk of falling several meters to the ground.
• Most countries (apart from Japan) do not have standardized beam specifications for monorails, so most tend to be proprietary systems.

The Las Vegas Monorail (Convention Center Station)

• In an emergency, passengers cannot immediately exit because the monorail vehicle usually sits on top of its rail and there is no ledge or railing to stand on. They must wait until a fire engine or a cherry picker comes to the rescue. If the monorail vehicle is on fire and rapidly filling with smoke, the passengers may face an unpleasant choice between jumping to the ground (and breaking bones in the process) or staying in the vehicle and risking suffocation. Newer monorail systems resolve this by building emergency walkways alongside the entire track (though this reduces the advantage of visually blocking only a minimal amount of sky).
• There are also some lingering concerns over the speed and capacity of monorails.

The Las Vegas Monorail, pulling into the LV Convention Center Station, near Paradise & Desert Inn Rds. ... The Las Vegas Monorail, pulling into the LV Convention Center Station, near Paradise & Desert Inn Rds. ... A monorail train arrives at the Sahara Station on a Spring evening in Las Vegas. ... Engine 4 - City of Chico, CA A Fire Engine is one of many specialized fire suppression apparatuses. ...

Partial list of monorail systems

Monorail systems have been built in many countries around the world, many of them on elevated tracks through crowded areas that would otherwise require the construction of expensive underground lines or have the disadvantages of surface lines.

Tama Toshi Monorail Line, Tokyo, Japan

The Ueno Zoo Monorail carries passengers within the zoo in Tokyo.

Download high resolution version (1000x569, 267 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1000x569, 267 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The Tama Toshi Monorail Line (多摩都市モノレール線) is a monorail line in the western part of Tokyo, Japan. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Categories: Stub ...

Asia

• Japan has employed monorails for rapid transit in seven cities, including Tokyo and Osaka - The Tokyo Monorail carries around 100 million passengers yearly. See monorails in Japan.

• Kuala Lumpur Monorail - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

• Shanghai, China - Completed in 2004 the Shanghai Maglev Monorail runs for 30 km between Pudong Shanghai International Airport and the Shanghai Lujiazui financial district. Designed for speeds up to 500 km/h (310 mph) its regular service speed is in the region of 430 km/h (267 mph). The Shanghai Maglev Monorail is the fastest commercial railway system in the world.

• Sentosa, Singapore. Closed March, 2005. Will be replaced by a new system, the Sentosa Express.

• South Korea

Subway redirects here; for the restaurant named Subway, see Subway (restaurant). ... Tokyo Monorail (東京モノレール) is a monorail system connecting Tokyo International Airport to Hamamatsucho Station in downtown Tokyo, Japan. ... Osaka Castle, Ōsaka-jō Umeda district of Osaka Location in Japan Osaka City  listen? (大阪市; Ōsaka-shi) is the third-largest city in Japan, with a population of 2. ... Tokyo Monorail (東京モノレール) is a monorail system connecting Tokyo International Airport to Hamamatsucho Station in downtown Tokyo, Japan. ... Here is an alphabetical list of monorails in Japan: Categories: Japan-related stubs | Rail stubs | Transportation in Japan ... The Kuala Lumpur monorail system in Malaysia opened August 31, 2003, and serves 11 stations running 8. ... Mayor Datuk Ruslin Hasan District Kuala Lumpur District Area  - Total (City) 243. ... Shanghai (Chinese: 上海; pinyin: ; Shanghainese IPA: ) is Chinas largest city and is situated on the banks of the Yangtze River Delta. ... Maglev can refer to General Magnetic levitation Magnetic levitation trains This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Sentosa, which means Tranquillity in Malay, is a popular island resort in Singapore, visited by some two million people a year. ...

Europe

• Belgium: There's a monorail in the Plopsaland theme park.
• Germany operates a suspended monorail in Wuppertal, the Schwebebahn Wuppertal, dating back to 1901; Dresden's Schwebebahn has a similar system; The university of Dortmund has developed a magnetic Monorail Einschienenbahn. The system is the one used for the Düsseldorf SkyTrain, which operates at Düsseldorf International Airport. There is also the experimental Transrapid in Emsland that has been build by the German producers as a link from the City of Shanghai (China) to Shanghai International Airport.
• England has monorail systems at Chester Zoo, Gatwick Airport, and Birmingham International Airport
• Italy
• Moscow, Russia
• Listowel, Ireland is the site of the worlds first commercial monorail, named the Lartigue system after Charles Lartigue who constructed this railway in 1888.

Wuppertal is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. ... Schwebebahn over the river Wupper The Schwebebahn Wuppertal is a suspension railway in Wuppertal, Germany. ... 1901 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Brühls Terrace and the Frauenkirche Dresden [ˈdreːsdn̩] (Sorbian/Lusatian Drježdźany), the capital city of the German federal state of Saxony, is situated in a valley on the river Elbe. ... The Schwebebahn Dresden around 1920 The Schwebebahn Dresden is the oldest suspension railway - a kind of hanging monorail - in the world (1891/1900), in Dresden, Germany. ... Map of Germany showing Dortmund Dortmund is a city in Germany, located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. ... Düsseldorf International Airport is an airport located eight kilometres from Düsseldorf, Germany. ... Transrapid at the Emsland test facility Transrapid is a German monorail system using magnetic levitation. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Religion... Chester Zoo is an award winning zoological garden in Cheshire in the United Kingdom. ... Gatwick Airport (IATA Airport Code: LGW, ICAO Airport Code: EGKK) is Londons second airport and the second largest airport in the UK after Heathrow. ... Birmingham International Airport is a major airport located on the border of the city of Birmingham and borough of Solihull (and mostly in the latter) in the West Midlands, England. ... Saint Basils Cathedral Moscow (Russian/Cyrillic: Москва́, pronunciation: Maskvá  listen), capital of Russia, located on the river Moskva, and encompassing 1097. ... Listowel (Irish: Lios Tuathail) is a market town in County Kerry, Ireland, and is situated on the River Feale, 27 km (17 miles) from the county town, Tralee. ... Lartigue is the name of a monorail system invented by the French engineer Charles Lartigue (1834-1907). ...

North America

Newark Airport Monorail, Newark, New Jersey

Monorails can be found in the following places in North America: Download high resolution version (2304x1536, 521 KB)Photograph taken by J. L. Schilling, 16 Mar 2005. ... Download high resolution version (2304x1536, 521 KB)Photograph taken by J. L. Schilling, 16 Mar 2005. ... AirTrain Newark is a 3 km (1. ... Skyline of downtown Newark as seen from the Newark Bay Bridge. ...

• Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida - Arguably the world's best-known, it serves over five million passengers yearly.
• Disneyland in Anaheim, California
• Seattle, Washington - short monorail (Seattle Center Monorail) built for the Century 21 Exposition in 1962
• Jacksonville, Florida - public transit
• Las Vegas, Nevada - public transit
• Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Florida - people mover
• Newark International Airport in Newark, New Jersey - people mover
• Six Flags La Ronde in Montreal, Quebec - once part of a larger monorail systems built for Expo 67
• Minnesota Zoo in Apple Valley, Minnesota
• Toronto Zoo in Toronto, Ontario - mothballed after a fatal accident

Cinderella Castle, at the center of the Magic Kingdom, is Walt Disney World Resorts most recognizable icon. ... The Seal of the City of Orlando The city of Orlando is the county seat of Orange County, Florida. ... Disneyland[1] is a theme park at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. ... Anaheim is a city in Orange County, Southern California, located 6 miles (15km) northwest of Downtown Santa Ana. ... Seattle skyline City nickname: The Emerald City Location of Seattle in Washington State County King Mayor Greg Nickels Area  - Land  - Water 369. ... The Seattle Center Monorail is an elevated monorail line in Seattle, Washington, that runs one mile along Fifth Avenue from Westlake Center in Downtown to Seattle Center in Lower Queen Anne. ... The Space Needle, built for the Century 21 Exposition. ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Jacksonville skyline and the Acosta Bridge. ... A taxi serving as a bus Public transport comprises all transport systems in which the passengers do not travel in their own vehicles. ... A monorail train arrives at the Sahara Station on a Spring evening in Las Vegas. ... Diagram of Tampa International Airport Tampa International Airport is an airport located in Tampa, Florida, serving the Tampa-St. ... Franklin Street, looking North, Tampa c. ... A people mover is a fully-automated light rail or tram system. ... Newark Liberty International Airport (IATA Airport Code EWR; ICAO Airport Code KEWR) is an international airport within the city limits of both Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey, United States. ... Skyline of downtown Newark as seen from the Newark Bay Bridge. ... Six Flags La Ronde is the largest amusement park in Quebec. ... This article needs cleanup. ... The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, or simply Expo 67 was a Worlds Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1967 to coincide with the Canadian Centennial that year. ... Apple Valley is a city located in Dakota County, Minnesota, and a suburb of the Twin Cities. ... The Toronto Zoo is a zoo located in the northeastern part of Toronto, Ontario. ... Motto: Diversity Our Strength Map of Ontario Counties, Toronto being red Area: 641 sq. ...

South America and Australia

• Sydney, Australia has a monorail originally designed as public transport but has found more use as a tourist attraction.
• The Gold Coast, Queensland has two monorails:
  • A 2 km monorail around the Sea World Theme Park.
  • A link between Conrad Jupiters Casino and the nearby Broadbeach shopping district.
• Brazil has recently built new monorail systems.

Sydneys skyline with the Opera House on the left Sydney is the capital city of the Australian state of New South Wales and Australias largest and oldest city, founded in 1788. ... Glitz and palm trees The Gold Coast is a coastal region approximately 70 kilometres south of Brisbane, Australia that, over the past 50 years, has coalesced from a collection of scattered villages into a city of approximately 480,000 people - currently Australias seventh largest city - and Australias largest... The entrance to Sea World. ... The Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, New Jersey A casino is a building that accommodates gambling. ...

Future monorail projects

• The 1-mile monorail built in Seattle for the Century 21 Exposition in 1962 is expected to be replaced by the Green Line, a 14-mile monorail line that will serve as public transit (construction begins in 2005).
• Extensions of the Las Vegas Strip monorail north to the city center and south to the airport are being planned.
• As part of the DestiNY USA project in Syracuse, a monorail from Syracuse University to Syracuse Hancock International Airport via downtown and the DestiNY complexes is planned.

Several new systems are being built in Asian cities including: Seattle skyline City nickname: The Emerald City Location of Seattle in Washington State County King Mayor Greg Nickels Area  - Land  - Water 369. ... The Space Needle, built for the Century 21 Exposition. ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Green Line is the first phase of a proposed five-line monorail system to be constructed in Seattle, Washington by the Seattle Popular Monorail Authority, also known as the Seattle Monorail Project. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... DestiNY USA is the Pyramid Companies of Syracuse, New Yorks project to turn Syracuse into a leading entertainment and technology city. ... Clinton Square in Downtown Syracuse Syracuse is a city located in Onondaga County, New York, USA. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the city had a total population of 147,306, and its metropolitan area had a population of 732,117. ... Syracuse University Syracuse University (SU) is a major private American research university. ... Syracuse Hancock International Airport is located just north of the city of Syracuse, New York off of Interstate 81 near Mattydale, New York. ... The MONY Towers in Downtown Syracuse are perhaps the best-known buildings in Syracuse, after the Carrier Dome. ...

• Tehran, Iran [1] (http://www.irna.ir/irnewtest/en/news/view/menu-237/0504121257193154.htm).
• Putrajaya, Malaysia
• Sentosa Express, linking Sentosa, Singapore to the main island
• Chongqing, China
• Jakarta, Indonesia [2] (http://indahnesia.com/Indonesia/Jawa/Jakarta/Jakarta.php?code=JAKMON)
• West Kowloon Cultural District, Hong Kong, linking the WKCD with Tsim Sha Tsui
• Hyderabad, India

Tehran (also spelled Teheran, which more correctly reflects the Persian pronunciation) (تهران in Persian), population 9,000,000 (metropolitan: 14,000,000), and a land area of 254 square miles, is the capital of Iran and one of the major world cities. ... The Putra Mosque Putrajaya (formerly known as Prang Besar) is a new administration centre of Malaysia that is located in the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) area. ... Sentosa, which means Tranquillity in Malay, is a popular island resort in Singapore, visited by some two million people a year. ... Chongqing (Simplified Chinese: 重庆; Traditional Chinese: 重慶; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chung-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Chungking; literally Double Celebration) is the largest and most populous of the Peoples Republic of Chinas four provincial-level municipalities, and the only one in the less densely populated western half... Map of Indonesia showing Jakarta Jakarta (also Djakarta or DKI Jakarta) is the capital and the largest city of Indonesia, located on the northwest coast of the island of Java, at 6°11′ S 106°50′ E. It has an area of 650 km² and a population of 8. ... The West Kowloon Cultural District (西九龍文娛藝術區) is a proposed district of concentration for arts, cultural and entertainment establishments in Hong Kong. ... There are several places named Hyderābād, including, For the pre-1956 Indian state, see Hyderabad state For the city in Andhra Pradesh, India, see Hyderabad, India For the city in Sindh, Pakistan, see Hyderabad, Pakistan This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise...

See also

• Public transport
• Personal rapid transit
• Transrapid
• Meigs Elevated Railway, an experimental monorail from 1886

A taxi serving as a bus Public transport comprises all transport systems in which the passengers do not travel in their own vehicles. ... Older children can use personal rapid transit without adult help. ... Transrapid at the Emsland test facility Transrapid is a German monorail system using magnetic levitation. ... The Meigs Elevated Railway was an experimental steam-powered monorail invented by Joe V. Meigs of Lowell, Massachusetts, built in 1886 in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. ... 1886 is a common year starting on Friday (click on link to calendar) Events January 18 _ Modern field hockey is born with the formation of The Hockey Association in England. ...

External links

Monorails in general

• The Monorail Society (http://www.monorails.org/) - home page of a volunteer organization promoting monorails, with separate pages on monorail switches (http://www.monorails.org/tMspages/switch.html) and a backyard monorail (http://www.monorails.org/tMspages/NMT01.html)
• Innovative Transportation Technologies (http://faculty.washington.edu/jbs/itrans/) - a website for the Transportation engineering and Urban planning programs at the University of Washington

Transport engineering aims to ensure the safe and efficient movement of people and goods. ... Urban, city, or town planning, deals with design of the built environment from the municipal and metropolitan perspective. ... The University of Washington, founded in 1861, is a major public research university in the Seattle metropolitan area. ...

Specific monorails

• Schwebebahn Monorail in Wuppertal, Germany (http://schwebebahn.com/index.asp?lan=en)
• Jacksonville SkyWay (http://jtaonthemove.com/service/sky/)
• Las Vegas Monorail (http://www.lvmonorail.com/)
• Seattle Monorail (http://www.seattlemonorail.com/) - separately managed from the new Seattle Monorail Project (http://www.elevated.org/)
• Sydney Metro (http://www.metromonorail.com.au/) - partly a monorail system

Monorail Advocacy Groups

• Austin Monorail Project (http://www.AustinMonorail.org/) - a non-profit advocating monorail transit for Austin, TX