Types and technical feature

Modern monorails depend on a large solid beam as the vehicles' running surface. There are a number of competing designs divided into two broad classes, straddle-beam and suspended monorails.

The most common type is the straddle-beam, in which the train straddles a steel or reinforced concrete beam 2 to 3 feet (0.61 to 0.91 m) wide. A rubber-tired carriage contacts the beam on the top and both sides for traction and to stabilize the vehicle. The style was popularized by the German company ALWEG.

The French company SAFEGE offers a system with cars suspended beneath the wheel carriage, and the wheels ride inside the single beam. The Chiba Urban Monorail is the world's largest suspended network.

There is also a historical type of suspension monorail developed by German inventors Nicolaus Otto and Eugen Langen in the 1880s. It was built in the twin cities of Barmen and Elberfeld in Wupper Valley, Germany, opened in 1901, and is still in operation.

Power

Almost all modern monorails are powered by electric motors fed by dual third rails, contact wires or electrified channels attached to or enclosed in their guidance beams, but diesel-powered monorail systems also exist. Historically some systems, such as the Lartigue Monorail, used steam locomotives.

Magnetic levitation

Transrapid maglev on monorail track

Magnetic levitation train (maglev) systems by the German Transrapid were built as straddle-type monorails, as they are highly stable and allow rapid deceleration from great speed. At speed maglev trains hover over the track and are not in physical contact with it. The maglev is the fastest train of any type, the experimental SCMaglev having recorded a speed of 603 km/h (375 mph). The commercial Shanghai Maglev Train has run at 501 km/h (311 mph). However, the guideway is so wide that it can be argued it is not legitimate to call it a monorail.There are also slower maglev monorails intended for urban transport, such as Japan's Linimo (2003).

Switching

Switches at storage facility of Osaka Monorail

Some early monorails (notably the suspended monorail at Wuppertal, Germany, which dates from 1901 and is still in operation) have a design that makes it difficult to switch from one line to another. Some other monorails avoid switching as much as possible by operating in a continuous loop or between two fixed stations, as in Seattle, Washington.

Current monorails are capable of more efficient switching than in the past. With suspended monorails, switching may be accomplished by moving flanges inside the beamway to shift trains to one line or another.

The Sydney Monorail in Sydney avoided switching by operating in a single loop.

The high capacity Tokyo Monorail

Straddle-beam monorails require that the beam moves for switching, which was an almost prohibitively ponderous procedure. Now the most common way of achieving this is to place a moving apparatus on top of a sturdy platform capable of bearing the weight of vehicles, beams and its own mechanism. Multiple-segmented beams move into place on rollers to smoothly align one beam with another to send the train in its desired direction, with the design originally developed by ALWEG capable of completing a switch in 12 seconds Some of these beam turnouts are quite elaborate, capable of switching between several beams or simulating a railroad double-crossover.

Where it must be possible to move a monorail train from one beam to another, as in storage or repair shops, a traveling beam not unlike a railroad transfer table may be employed. A single beam, long enough to carry a single monorail vehicle, is aligned at an entry beam to be mounted by the monorail cars. The entire beam then rolls with the vehicle to align with the desired storage beam.

The now-closed Sydney Monorail had a traverser at the depot, which allowed a train on the main line to be exchanged with another from the depot. There were about six lines in the depot, including one maintenance.

Grades

Rubber-tired monorails are typically designed to cope with 6% grade. Rubber-tired light rail or metro lines can cope with similar or greater grades - for example, the Lausanne Metro has grades of up to 12% and the Montreal Metro up to 6.5%, while VAL systems can handle 7% grades.

Specification Other Rail Transport System

Similarities

Monorails are often elevated, sometimes leading to confusion with other elevated systems such as the Docklands Light Railway, Vancouver SkyTrain and the AirTrain JFK, which run on two rails.

Monorail vehicles often appear similar to light rail vehicles, and can be run or unstaffed. They can be individual inflexible vehicles, spoken single units, or multiple units coupled into trains. Like other advanced rapid transit systems, monorails can be driven by linear induction motors; like conventional railways, vehicle bodies can be connected to the beam via bogies, allowing curves to be negotiated.

Differences

Unlike some trams and light rail systems, modern monorails are always separated from other traffic and foot-travelers. They are both guided and supported via interaction with the same single beam, in contrast to other guided systems like rubber-tyred metros, the Sapporo Municipal Subway; or guided buses or trams, such as Translohr. Monorails do not use pantographs.

From the passenger's perspective, monorails can have some advantages over trains, buses, and automobiles. As with other grade-separated transit systems, monorails avoid red lights, intersection turns, and traffic jams. Surface-level trains, buses, automobiles, and foot-travelers can collide each one with the other, while vehicles on dedicated, grade-separated rights-of-way such as monorails can collide only with other vehicles on the same system, with much fewer opportunities for collision. As with other elevated transit systems, monorail passengers enjoy sunlight and views and by watching for familiar landmarks, they can know better when to get off to reach their destinations. As with other systems, expensive and noisy ventilation systems are not necessary if the cars have traditional windows that can be opened by passengers. (This also eliminates the weight and bulk of ventilation systems.) Monorails can be quieter than diesel buses and trains. They obtain electricity from the track structure, eliminating costly and unsightly overhead power lines and poles. Compared to the elevated train systems of New York, Chicago and elsewhere, a monorail beamway casts a narrow shadow.

Maglev

Under the Monorail Society beam width standard, some but not all maglev systems are considered monorails, such as the Transrapid and Linimo. Maglevs differ from other monorails in that they do not (normally) physically contact the beam.

Who Invented Monorail

Definition of Monorail

A monorail is a railway in which the track consists of a single rail, typically elevated. The term is also used to describe the beam of the system, or the vehicles traveling on such a beam or track.

Who Invented

The first passenger carrying monorail celebrated a grand opening June 25th, 1825.It had a one-horse power engine accurately. Based on a 1821 patent by Henry Robinson Palmer, the Cheshunt Railway was actually built to carry bricks, but made monorail history by carrying passengers at its opening.

Monorail History

1825 - Cheshunt Railway

The first passenger carrying monorail celebrated a grand opening June 25th, 1825. It had a one-horse power engine...literally. Based on a 1821 patent by Henry Robinson Palmer, the Cheshunt Railway was actually built to carry bricks, but made monorail history by carrying passengers at its opening.

1876 - Philadelphia Centennial

General Le-Roy Stone's steam driven monorail was first demonstrated at the United States Centennial Exposition in 1876. The ornately designed double-decker vehicle had two main wheels, the rear one driven by a rotary steam engine.

1876 - Sonoma Prismoidal

This 7-mile wooden monorail was proposed to be the first rail line built to connect the Northern California city of Sonoma with a steam ship landing at San Pablo Bay. Only three and a half miles were built, between Norfolk and Sonoma. The line operated from November 23, 1876 to May 5, 1877. The company went into bankruptcy that year. The track was 15 inches high and cost $4,500 per mile to build, half the cost of narrow guage railroads of the time. Promoter Joseph S. Kohn's plans to extend it to Sonoma Landing on the Petaluma River were never realized. Kohn also proposed an elevated prismoidal rail for San Francisco along Market Street, but land owners along the line objected.

1878 - Bradford & Foster Brook Monorail

A modified version of General Stone's Centennial monorail was put into use on a 6.4 kilometer line between Bradford and Gilmore, Pennsylvania. It was built to transport oil drilling equipment and personnel to Derrick City. Wayside stations were added at Tarpot, Babcock's Mill and Harrisburg Run. At that point, local inhabitants began to ride the line. The rotary engines lacked power and it was decided to gamble on a much larger locomotive driven by conventional pistons. The worst disaster in monorail history occurred on January 27, 1879 with this engine. Coupled to a flat car full of officials, the train was run at high speed to demonstrate its capability. The boiler exploded and the train crashed into a creek, killing the driver, fireman and three passengers. The rest were severely injured. The line was abandoned shortly thereafter.

1886 - Meigs Monorail

Captain J.V. Meig's monorail made it as far as having a test track, but the design was so far ahead of its time that it never caught on. Who could have imagined that aerodynamics would be considered as early as 1886?

1886 - Enos Electric Railway

The Enos Electric Railway, the first suspended monorail, was tested and demonstrated on the grounds of the Daft Electric Company in Greenville, New Jersey in 1886. It was built of light, open steelwork rather than massive wooden beams that most monorails to this point had used. The Greenville demonstration attracted considerable publicity in the press, but no major system was ever built. The design may have influenced Eugen Langen in Germany, as the Enos Monorail bears a remarkable likeness to the Wuppertal Schwebebahn in Germany.

1888 - The Listowel & Ballybunion Railway

The Lartigue Railway Construction Company opened a 14.5 kilometer steel-railed monorail on March 1, 1888. It linked the town of Ballybunion, on the west coast of Ireland, with the market town of Listowel. The only passenger-carrying monorail in the British Isles for many years, it ran until 1924. Rising operational costs and road transport forced it out of business.

1901 - Wuppertal Schwebebahn

Civil Engineer Eugen Langen of Cologne, Germany has left his mark on the history of monorails in a big way. His Schwebebahn (suspension railway) has operated successfully along the Wupper river for almost 100 years. It has survived two world wars and continues to operate profitably and safely today. For more photographs and a full-length article, see our Links page.

1909 - Brennan Monorail

Louis Brennan patented his invention for a gyroscopically-balanced car in 1903. A full scale demonstration was presented to the press on November 10, 1909 at Gillingham, England. It was built primarily as a military vehicle due to the high speed at which track could be laid. Even with passengers all on one side of the vehicle, the two onboard gyroscopes were strong enough to keep the car level. Despite a series of successful demonstrations to scientists, engineers and military officers, the fear that the gyroscopes might fail prevented Brennan's invention from ever being used for transportation.

1911 - William H. Boyes Monorail

This test track was built and demonstrated in 1911 in the tideflats of Seattle, Washington. The rails were made of wood and track cost was estimated to be around $3,000 per mile. A bargain! The Seattle Times commented at the time that "the time may come when these wooden monorail lines, like high fences, will go straggling across country, carrying their burden of cars that will develop a speed of about 20 miles per hour." Like so many inventions, lack of financial backing prevented further development.

1914 - Genoa Monorail

 Built for the 1914 "Esposizione Internazionale di Igiene, Marina e Colonie" exposition, this straddle-type monorail looks like a close cousin of many of today's Alweg-based monorails. The "Telfer" Monorail had coaches the size of railway cars and was conceived as a mass transit system demonstrator. The line linked the exhibition site with a central square of the city. The train was built by the Italian manufacturer Carminati & Toselli and consisted of 4 coaches for passengers, with an electric locomotive located in the middle. The monorail only operated for a couple of years and was then dismantled.

1924 - The Magnesium Monorail

One of the last Lartigue-based monorails was built by the Sierra Salt Corporation. It carried magnesium salts from their mine in the Crystal Hills to the Trona railhead in California. The route lay across the rugged terrain of the Saline Valley in Inyo County. The line was a great success until more modern ways of extracting magnesium put the mine company out of business two years later.

1929 - The Bennie Railplane

While railroad engineering stagnated between the world wars, one unique demonstation line was built by Scottish engineer George Bennie. The short test track was built over a railroad line near Glasgow, Scotland. Two electrically-powered propellers delivered 240 horsepower in a short burst for acceleration to the cruise speed of 160 kph. There were plans for a high-speed link between London and Paris, with a seaplane to carry passengers across the English Channel, but the grave economic difficulties of the 1930's doomed the Railplane from the start.

Advantage of Monorail

MONORAILS are proven.

 Each and every day hundreds of thousands of passengers are carried on monorails. Many of the world's transit monorails exist in Japan, eight of which are full-scale urban transit systems. Others exist in Malaysia, Europe, Russia, Korea, China, Brazil, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and a few in the United States. Several more are either under construction or in advanced planning. Surprisingly, Walt Disney World's Monorail System near Orlando, Florida, has one of the highest riderships of all monorails. Well over 100,000 passenger trips are recorded each day on the 14 miles of beamways (a far higher ridership than most USA light rail systems). Nothing "Mickey Mouse" about that! The system is there to move people between six stations, not just amuse them.

MONORAILS are safe.

Whether they are of the straddle-beam or suspended variety, modern monorail technology makes derailment virtually impossible. As monorail is elevated, accidents with surface traffic are impossible. Zero accidents with pedestrians or surface traffic translates to no system down time, less liability suits and most importantly, a safer public. Street rail systems with grade crossings (light rail, trams or trollies) can't approach this level of safety, as any study of accident history will show.

MONORAILS are environment friendly.

 Since most are electrically powered, monorails are non-polluting. In 2007, the Las Vegas Monorail aided in the annual removal of an estimated 3.2 million vehicle miles from Southern Nevada’s major roadways and reduced emissions by more than 58 tons of carbon monoxide (CO), volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) over the course of the year. Most monorails run on rubber tires and are very quiet. Monorails are the most aesthetically pleasing of all elevated rail systems. Their sleek design blends in with modern urban environments. Quick construction time results in less disruption to the surrounding environments, whether business or residential.

MONORAILS are cost effective.

The Tokyo-Haneda Monorail has been operating since 1964. This eight-mile dual-beam system is privately owned and TURNS A PROFIT each year. The Seattle Center Monorail, built in 1962 for the Century 21 exposition, is run by a private corporation. In return for the concession to operate the one-mile line, the corporation pays the city $75,000 every year. What private business would take on a contract like this unless profits were guaranteed? Profit is indeed an oddity in the transit world, as most transit technologies require enormous subsidies from taxpayers. Building monorail does not guarantee profit, but operating costs are almost always less.

MONORAILS are receiving serious attention from transit planners.

Houston Metro selected monorail for its city rail system, only to be cancelled later by the city's mayor. In 2003, Kuala Lumpur opened a spectacular monorail, connecting hot spots throughout the Malaysian city. Okinawa has the newest monorail in Japan, which also opened in 2003. In 2004 Las Vegas opened a four-mile leg of what could become a city-wide monorail system. Mumbai, India opened a new monorail in 2014. No less than three monorail systems have been contracted for Sao Paulo, Brazil! In 2015 Daegu, South Korea opened one of the most spectacular monorails in the world. As this website shows, new systems are in advanced planning or construction in several areas of the world. The Monorail Society keeps members and anyone interested informed with updates on our News Briefs page.

MONORAILS are popular with people / taxpayers.

Voters have demonstrated their preference for monorail more than once. In Los Angeles, they voted five to one in favor of monorail in a referendum. LA transit officials ignored them and continud to build light rail and subways. In November of 1997, approximately 93,000 Seattle voters said yes to a grass roots-produced initiative for a 40-mile citywide monorail system. A subsequent Seattle ballot initiative to tax automobile owners for a starter line in 2002 passed as well. Although voters supported the monorail on four separate ballots, a controversy over debt financing and lack of City Hall support in 2005 resulted in the cancellation of the project. Monorails still remain popular with people and more are being built in coming years! What are they doing in your city, trains in traffic?