I finally found a useful monorail.
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- Опубліковано 20 сер 2024
- The Doppelmayr Garaventa Monorack is a decades-old product. I've no idea how I missed it before. But for the third video in the Monorail Trilogy, this isn't an advert: I'm just happy to be proved wrong. ▪ More about the Monorack: www.doppelmayr...
Previously, Wuppertal in 2016: • Why Wuppertal's Suspen... (I'm not proud of this video -- the Tim Traveller has done a much better video on the system here, and you should probably watch that instead: • Schwebebahn: Why Wuppe... )
And the Roadmachines monorail in 2020: • The tiny monorails tha...
(Thanks also to Grotto de Peo in Ronco sopra Ascona. If you're ever in the area, their food is delicious.)
Camera: Alicja Pahl
Producer: Sebastian Capeda at Viven viven.ch
🟥 MORE FROM TOM: www.tomscott.com/
(you can find contact details and social links there too)
📰 WEEKLY NEWSLETTER with good stuff from the rest of the internet: www.tomscott.c...
❓ LATERAL, free weekly podcast: lateralcast.com/ / lateralcast
➕ TOM SCOTT PLUS: / tomscottplus
👥 THE TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES: / techdif
I didn't realise, on the day, how strange the camera shots of under the rail would look! To be absolutely clear: the rail is static, the wheels are moving. But because the camera's also moving, you're getting the same effect that makes car wheels look like they're going backwards sometimes. Hopefully it's obvious what's going on!
👍
Ok
oohoohohohohoh
Hi Tom Scott
@@mikedcreative Realise is a correct form, used in English speaking countries outside north america
I like the reassurance that this isn't an ad, as if we'd find it difficult to believe Tom's enthusiasm for an unusual and obscure piece of infrastructure.
I was hoping for an affiliate link.
I mean it isn't but it is. 😂 You know what I mean, officially it isn't an ad it's got that feel 😂
It's not an ad unless there are payments and control. Maybe you can construe the free roller coaster ride as payment... hmmmm
There are people who tried to cancel him for that
Monorails are cool as hell
Tom's just trying to find more rollercoasters to get on for free or cheap, let's be honest. His conquering of fear towards coasters has evolved into an addiction for them.
😂😂
For some it's a monorail, but I like to call it the worlds slowest rollercoaster.
He is a thoosie at heart
"free or cheap"... eh, not sure that travelling to another country counts! XD
It is essentially a stripped down spike coaster
I love Tom's disclaimer that this isn't an ad for a monorail as if any of us are going to go out and buy one
You underestimated how enthusiastic monorail enthusiasts could be
@@zeroyuki92 You could say they have a.... one track mind. YEAAAAAAAAAA-
I'll see myself out.
@@zeroyuki92 missed an obvious one there you underestimate Tom's power... AS Revenge of the Sith.
I mean, if I were living in an isolated cabin in the mountains and hadn't heard of this thing before, I'd probably be considering it rn.
Now I must.
For anyone wondering: This is in “Ronco sopra Ascona” in the italian speaking part of Switzerland. The monorail is used by a restaurant called: “Osteria Grotto da Peo” - highly recommended!
Bellissimo! Molto Bene!
Of course it’s Switzerland.
Yes... oddly enough he didn't mention where he was. The Italian was a clue, but...
I was about to ask why the italian sign, thanks!
Thank you!
Glad to hear you survived the wrath of **shudders** monorail enthusiasts
😂😂
They're really only half as bad as train enthusiasts
@@Zebra_M but much higher maintenance
@@Zebra_M I like trains...
The problem with monorail enthusiasts is they have a one-track mind
I like that Tom did not specify whether or not the company actually said yes to letting him ride it.
It's one of Maxim's Grice of conversation, after all; "Be concise"
Just asked for an interview, set up a tripod, then snuck away by slowly backing out of frame to climb on
Get awf my rail!
“Hey get back here!”
@@Abdega Am I the only one who started to hear Benny Hill music?
I love that even Tom Scott has plot arcs like "angering monorail enthusiasts" or like "Chris was never called Toast"
Never happened!
or the VPN ad one
Never appened
The wider shots of Tom just crawling along at a snails pace are so funny
As a monorail enthusiast enthusiast, I am really glad you mentioned monorail enthusiasts in this video.
Do you mean you like the representation, or are you more like a monorail enthusiasts enthusiast?
"Internet subcultures are an endless recursion, there's no bottom."
-Randall Munro, XKCD
@@zuki9537 As a monorail enthusiast enthusiast enthusiast enthusiast I'm enthusiastic about you being enthusiastic about the enthusiasm of OP about monorail enthusiasts.
As a monorail I appreciate the enthusiasm but feel some of it may be misdirected.
As an enthusiasm enthusiast I can confirm that I indeed am a monorail
I love the enthusiasm for being proven wrong on something, and so openly sharing it. It's a level of humility and honesty the world can never have enough of.
The key is that being wrong shouldn't be taken as a hit to the ego or something painful, damaging or bad. It simple means one was ignorant of certain facts and no longer is- what's the problem?
Once I was explaining something I believed that would be a good idea and then someone I know completely and instantly shut me down with a counterpoint I hadn't even thought of, it was humiliating and made me realize I had to completely reevaluate how I considered politics. Developed an instant crush on them then and there.
Came across this at a village hill vacation home in Kuching, Malaysia. They use it to bring cargo up and down the vacation home including your bags, so you can hike up and down without hauling heavy luggage. Genius honestly
malaysia represent
The second you hear 'I have a history with monorails' you know it's gonna be a weird video
Tom Obama Scott
But I’m a good way 😅
Meanwhile Tom has seen so many weird things, he has "a history" with almost every weird thing on earth.
it's not weird at all
I've never heard of this guy or seen one of his videos, but for some reason it popped up in my feed and for some reason I clicked it and as soon as I heard the line "I have a history with monorails" I was hooked and had to know more.
It's almost scary how enthusiastic Tom is about this monorail
Blink twice if you're under duress Tom!
Look at his smile. :D
Lmfao he’s just passionate 😅
I think he got some threats from mono-rail builders 😶
@@SyntheticFuture Worse.
What I like is this eschews the need for a dusty muddy road up a step incline that would cut back and forth and create conditions for landslides. There is an environmental quality about this. I wonder if larger smoother passenger-centric versions of these are planned or exist? I suppose at that point we move into cable gondola territory, but those tend to climb in straight lines between towers with cleared paths.
I agree with you but counter point is that all those cuttings create roads as you mentioned. Roads for cars, unfortunately there would neet to be a ferry system for the cars that would go onto the monorail.
Using the same solution would be to make a raised road on stilts, probably costly to build and maintain.
Either that, or it might get into the territory of a cog railway. Similar qualities, but i guess at such weights it wouldnt be safe to rely on just the gear rail for support and stability
(Those might also make a really interesting video. Im still facinated by the Matterhorn-Gotthard-Bahn and rode it just once)
Larger smoother versions are called train or ropeway
I remember seeing monorails like these when I visited Cinque Terre, Italy over the summer. Definitely makes sense for climbing the steep terraced hills and moving supplies around.
As an anti-monorail enthusiasts, I am outraged we lost such a valuable member
😆
Don't go off the rail there, bud
He is still a member, but one good experience may put his membership up against a vote
Technically you can call it a roller coaster that doesn't have a drop so he's a "shitty roller coaster" enthusiasts
@@thezpn off the rail*
I'm glad you made this discovery, but I have to say, having beef with a specific type of transportation infrastructure is possibly the most Tom Scott thing I can imagine.
I mean, who doesn't?
*grumbles at the inadquacies of airport layouts*
Oh just wait until you find out how many people hate cars!
@@41-Haiku or bikes!
Or God Damn Electro Scooter.
Swegways......
In the rhine valley there are multiple castles which were built on quite some steep hills (obviously for protection) that are nowadays supplied by those small monorails. They are quite ingenious for that purpose. Even some vineyards use them.
i have been on a vineyard monorail, they're a bit intimidating but oh so cool
yea, in Lavaux a lot of vineyards have installed them, I always wished to try it bc I never saw one in action.
Pedal powered monorail cars used to creak around the public park in Harbin, China on a 15 foot high track. They wobbled while being pedaled, clanged like garbage cans and whistled in the wind. They rubbed rust stains on your clothes, and got stuck sometimes. But in midwinter the lit ice sculptures filled the park, and were built around the track, so then you pedalled through the eery glowing castles and monuments of ice. As I remember, there was no charge if you were crazy enough to climb the iced steel stairs.
Farming monorails are also not uncommon in rural Japan for farming along steep inclines, mainly for certain kinds of fruit orchards but also for mushroom farming below the canopy of trees to shade from direct sunlight. Nikkari, Koei-Sangyo, Masatomi are companies that produces farming monorails.
I’m sure I’ve seen a video of an elderly Japanese farmer riding one.. now I know I didn’t imagine it
I've also seen Garaventa monorails in Japan.
Might not be totally the same but I've seen a Japanese house built on a hillside with an enclosed pod on a rail to transport a disabled person downhill to the house itself from the roadside parking space.
You see them a lot for the mikan (tangerines) orchards in Wakayama prefecture.
I can't tell whether the hillsides are the prime land for mikan (in the same way the French talk about "terroir" for grapes / wine), or whether it's the flat land, or if it matters at all. You see mikan orchards all over - lovely smell when the blossom is out, and the mikan in season are absolutely fantastic.
As someone who does not live in Japan, a Detective Conan episode showed me an attempted murder featuring a farming monorail before. Good to know it is not uncommon.
Ah. So a cog railway normally required three rails, two for the wheels and one for the cog track. This one is elevated, and so building just the cog track, making it strong enough to support the carriage, is easiest. Cool, nifty, and fascinating. Thanks, Tom.
Yes, also a cog railway (like the one up to the Zugspitze) needs a proper track to be built as it's wieder, has to accommodate larger (almost regular size) rail cars and it can't make super steep inclines or super sharp turns as a result - so a lot of groundwork is required.
Now, the big ones can move many more passengers or cargo, but where that is not required a small one like in the video is actually perfect. The alternative would be a small cable car, but those need much more robust infrastructure (the pillars, cables, top and ground station), are harder to maintain and probably way too expensive for most applications.
Also normal cog railways are very incline-sensitive; they ought to be built for one specific incline iirc, without too much deviation.
@@farmerboy916 I don't see why that should be so. Wouldn't a cog railway going up to a mountaintop change inclines to follow the changing slope of the mountain?
@@MenachemASalomon Because the _car_ is built at a particular angle, and unless you have it on some massive self levelling contraption it can only reasonably tilt so far.
@@farmerboy916 I hadn't thought of that. But then I took the opportunity to drive up the Mt. Washington Auto Road instead of taking the cog railway, so I've no experience. I would have thought the incline inside the car just matches the incline of the track rather than being leveled. But that only works for limited inclines.
There are monorails like this in Japan on certain mountains. Lots of mountains have temples and shrines for people to visit, and the monorails make it easy to transport material up and down.
I'm pleased to see someone thought to combine a cog railroad with a monorail. A reminder that sometimes you can make good new technology simply by combining the best of two existing technologies.
I love that Tom is one of those rare souls who doesn't just admit it, but gets excited about being proved wrong.
Proven wrong? What video were you watching? Because I assure you that it was not this video.
Opportunity to learn!
i think he's just excited about riding around in a monorail
@@johnwt7333 2:55-3:00 his own goddamn words, mate. But, more widely, he said that monorails are always worse, before, and here he was proved wrong; there is in fact a case for a monorail being the superior choice. That doesn't mean that because there's *A* case, he's wrong on all other cases, just in saying that they're always worse.
@@charlot6590 Wouldn't blame him
i love how he gets enthusiastic when he gets proven wrong. I wish more of us had that. its such a good trait to have!
Honestly, I don't even think he WAS proven wrong. This doesn't change the base point that monorails are an unnecessarily complicated solution for mass transit, as compared to passenger light rail. There are places where a mass transit monorail makes sense, but it's rare and depends on some specific geographical features that make normal rails impossible (or at least overly cumbersome). There are places where a super-light monorail makes sense, but it isn't mass transit. None of it changes the original point.
_"i love how he gets enthusiastic when he gets proven wrong"_
Even just expressing precisely stated arguments that counter public perception of a concept / principle is something most people will not go for. Take 'free markets' or 'capitalism' for example.. talking with left-leaning people about it is a disaster 99% of the time.
Never forget the toaster that popped at exactly two minutes
Farms on the side of hills in Korea too. I confess Don't remember where or when but a TV doco showing the monorail taking workers up the hill and produce back down again.
He wasn't proven wrong. His previous video doesn't say "all" monorails are bad. He specifically ranted about passenger transport in city. "proven wrong" is clickbait.
Monorail's are great, my town is getting one installed and we've been assured it will provide jobs and glide very smoothly.
Does it come with a catchy song?
Ah. Here in North Haverbrook we’re getting a monorail installed too!
is there a chance the track could bend?
I only know them as the Machines that bring up supplies to the castles in the Mittelrheintal in Germany. And it totally makes sense. They are highly elevated and often there is no road up, and if there is one it is not that nice to drive on
Well sir, there's nothing on Earth like a genuine, bona-fide, electrified, one-car monorail!
Monorail!
Monorail!
What's it called?
Monorail!
I've heard those things are awfully loud?
This video is not a commercial. It's just an action expected by the peace treaty between Tom and The Great Monorail Enthusiast Society.
Yesss rack and pinion rail! So cool to see a climbing monorail, glad you distilled something interesting from what others would dismiss as negativity. Switch points on rack and pinion railways with a third rail are absolutely nuts to see in action, its like a huge flip or turntable, something a scoobydoo villain would have in their house, but with rails on it.
In this area near Lago Maggiore (Ticino, Switzerland) you will find a surprising amount of monorails due to the steep terrain. Some monorails are like the one in the video, others are cable hauled, like a lift but sort of diagonal with a cabine on the rail and a motor at the top. There are also a lot of rather simple cable cars, not suited for passenger transport, mostly for farmers to transport material. Sometimes people think it's a good idea to use them, but it has been deadly for some.
Tom seems right that monorails only seem to be practical in edge cases. But if computer science has taught me anything it’s that edge cases appear more often than you think.
about 800 globally, if I remember what he said in the video. 🙂
Even a tiny percentage can be enough to build part of a business on if it can be available worldwide, just due to the number of people.
80% of bugs are made by 20% of code
Facts!
Computer science is the most far removed from the real world than any other form of engineering
"Can I have a go on one, please?" is a perfect Tom Scott line.
@@ragnkja It works because he said "please"
"I just got actually properly enthusiastic about being proved wrong" This is a hard stance to take, we're almost hard wired to not accept being proved wrong but it usually results in learning something interesting
On the other hand, with something as unequivocally true and strictly good as this... it's hard not to be excited by a flying pig.
The sound of the cart dying off as the video ends with complete silence is very soothing. I like it
For those who want to try a ride with such agricultural monorail: in the vineyards of Stuttgart, Germany they open these to the public once or twice a year. Check for the wine festival ('Steillagenfest' meaning 'very steep vineyards festival') in the district of Mühlhausen at river Neckar. It's fun and they serve very good wine in the traditional vinemaker's barracks on top...
Can you get a DUI on a monorail?
@@Churchgrimm The monorail drives itself, so there are only passengers onboard. So, you might get a PUI instead !
Steil is steep, not very steep
Isn't the Zacke kinda similar? (No idea about the technical stuff, but it is the enormous version of that little thing in the video.) According to Wikipedia it is a rack railway.
@@falscheente It is a rack railway, but almost everything else is different. It's more like a normal train.
It's funny, I have regularly hiked the trails of the mountain near my house, and I was always so curious about this thin, uncared for rail that snaked through the mountain forest. Looks like I finally got my answer, just a shame the rail seems to no longer be in use.
cool!
Where is this rail ?
Can you make a video of it ?
@@perstaffanlundgren There's plenty of those in Switrzerland, mainly on the steep vineyards in the southerns Cantons
time to start investing you time and money! bring back the monorails! Make monorails great again!
If you're a non-monorail enthusiast, the Pikes Peak Cog Railway uses the same rack and gear system on a standard track (and is also super cool)
Absolutely, did a trip up there earlier this year. It was amazing
Mount Washington, in northern New Hampshire, also has a cog railway. The boilers, to stay close to level on the inclines, are built at a crazy angle to the frame of the locomotives.
There is actually one of these operating at a pasture near my town in the german alps. It always looks funny to me when i see it slowly going up and down the hill.
It's lovely when people admit, publicly and with the same level of fanfare than the original statement, when they're proven wrong (for whichever value of wrong), without peppering that admission with caveats or fauxpologies. Thank you!
Well, he still said that monorails are almost always a bad idea, and he stands by this. He never said that they are always a bad idea. And in this use case they are actually one of the best ideas. That are a lot of these types of monorails around the world in steep vineyards to transport the harvested grapes.
I have also seen monorails in very steep vineyards. Where you normally only get to on foot and have to arduous carry something back and forth. A monorail between the vines takes up hardly any space and makes the manual work there so much easier.
But the Wuppertal Suspension Railway is also very popular for local transport. Especially because only over the river there was room to build a railway.
Yes, they have been using them in the Cinque Terra region of Italy for decades or more. I don't recall if Tom ever mentioned that in previous videos, but they are exactly what is needed for the terrain. Steep hillsides, small cars, sharp corners... all perfectly suited to a cogged monorail.
@@mjmdiver1137 he did, in the last small monorail video in 2020.
Train = iron horse and monorail = iron llama?
I remember them there too, when I was on vacation next to the mosel (which, obviously, is well known for wine)
I appreciate a guy who acts positively to being proven wrong rather than doubling down.
Tom sitting abolutely still trying to not look like someone who is currently being filmed is absolutely hilarious
Tom Scott is the type of person who researches monorails in his free time
You dont?
And we are the type of person watching a monorail researcher do it and talk about it. XD I personally love it! He, and the people involved in his videos never cease to amaze me.
Tom Scott is the kind of person who gets lost on Wikipedia and then makes a game show about it.
and in job time too apparently
There's lots of these in Switzerland where they are used by farmers in vineyards. They make it much easier to bring supplies up or grapes down the steep hills where they grow. Great video!
These monorails (though I don't know if they have been made by the same manufacturer) are quite common in the vinyards set up along the steep sides of the Moselle valley here in Germany. They are used by the vintners to carry stuff up and down the hillsides. The bottom stop is usually beside a road, which can be access by tractor or truck and they are mostly petrol powered.
These are amazing machines, I've never really thought about them too much before but you see a lot of them in Southern Italy transporting - in particular - lemons from mountainside terraced orchards down to the nearest road. Really good idea, they'll go essentially anywhere you can walk to install the legs.
You can see those in many steep vineyards in Germany, for example at the Moselle, too! There they are used for transporting materials to inaccessible areas and also for transporting the grapes during the harvest season.
I think you can see one even from the vantage point on the service point Moseltal on A61.
I'm intrigued and impressed by the manufacturing detail in the rack: Instead of machining a bar for the teeth, it is made of formed (corrugated!?) flat bar.
Noticed that too, clever way to do it as machining from stock would be way more expensive.
Also somewhat lighter, as not only do you not have the body from the teeth, you also have the rail itself looks like hollow box section with most of one side missing. Some interesting calculations about structural loading must have gone into that.
I thought the same thing. Never even came to my mind to make them like this. That whole thing can be probably bent in any imaginable form required within certain limits without too much difficulty
That is engineering for efficiency / economics right there. Genius.
I'm 100% sure those have been stamped from full flat bar until someone said - "wait a minute.."
Cheaper, easier to bend, easier to repair.
Tom's newfound love of roller coasters has taken him to some odd places.
How absolutely refreshing to have someone say they were wrong and that they changed their idea about something. Kudos for having a truly open mind. (And, no, I am not one of those monorail enthusiasts.)
These also seem like a really neat solution for wheelchair accessible hiking trails! As in, a vehicle with an ability to seat a person that otherwise wouldn't be mobile or would struggle/be in pain to climb such steep hills and turns, with a control for speed adjustments, and obviously a few more extra safety procotions but, that could be really neat..
Problem is that the raised rail would make it difficult for a person with limited mobility to get on and off
@@Ellie-rx3jt i think if we would build such an expensive thing a little ramp wouldnt be the biggest problem
One would think installing permanent vehicles on a trail would take away from the natural beauty of the area
@@Sebastian-pl3xm doesn't need to follow the trail: that's the beauty of this, it can cross areas people can't. At least in theory, but you get my point I think.
@@stevenn1940 I see now
With the way it uses gears to move on the track, it actually kinda reminds me of the old Lego monorail sets they used to make.
That was the same thought I had.
Indeed! Though those have the rack on the top, not the bottom.
Lego Technix!
Agree and it makes sense, both system needed a rail where the power to move came from the carrier not the rail, and ended up with the same solution.
Yes. Totally reminds me of the Lego space monorail I had as a child.
Tom looks absolutely excited to ride that monorail, it's adorable to watch!
There's one just like this in Italy’s Cinque Terre coastline. It runs up and down the mountain between vineyards and overlooks stunning views of the Ligurian sea.
Tom never failing to deliver videos we didn't know we wanted to watch
There are two ways to tell if a video is going to be good: is there an interesting question in the title, or is there a guy in a red shirt in the picture.
You actually see these alot in japanese mountains as well, just, well rusted (most probably not used for decades). Used to get supplies up to temples/shrines in the mountains, and they are very steep as well.
What do they use now to get those supplies up there?
@@anakay1184 Honestly not sure, either roads, or perhaps the temples/shrines themselves don't need as much resources anymore with fewer having people constantly living there. I also can't always correlate a rail I've seen to a specific temple
Some Japanese farms built into the mountainside still use them. Relatively easy to install, makes moving stuff up and down the mountain a lot easier, and a truck is often too dangerous to use in this kind of terrain
I was hiking in hills behind the the town of Minori on Italy's Amalfi Coast and stumbled upon one of those monorack systems. It was used to transport lemons grown on ancient terraced hillside farms still not accessible by road. Traditionally the farmers needed to move their products & supplies by donkey on the ancient footpaths. It was challenging hiking on those steep rocky footpaths - it would have been a very difficult life for the donkeys! The monorail made perfect sense there as a practical relatively low-cost solution.
Stairlifts in the UK for disabled people are usually on monorails attached to one wall, or sometimes on the stairs. Second rails are only needed for extra load carrying capacity, such as an electric wheelchair and bigger platform.
Finally the Monorail enthusiasts can rest knowing that Tom actually supports some of their beloved contraptions.
Also going up a steep hill on one of those looks like a lot of fun.
I like the use of corrugated steel bar welded to box section for the rack. Not as smooth, quiet, and efficient as a proper involute gear profile but that's got to be dirt cheap to manufacture.
looks like it"d be easy to electrify too, just glue on another strip of corrugated metal with a high resistance glue, then the drive wheel can get a different pole than the stabilizer wheels
Mr. Scott was proved wrong, admitted it, and was even enthusiastic about it. You never see that these days. I am not worthy sir. Mad respect.
There are a lot of these in Cinque Terre, in Liguria, Italy. The terrain is the same as the one in the video, except is on the sea instead of a lake! They are primarily used by people making wine on those hills!
This is great because it shows how you can have a nuanced opinion and still keep your beliefs. Smart people learn and change their minds over time when they get good new information. It's so important to be gracious when being proven wrong.
Most people do not react like that to contradicting information, because it requires them to spend energy on revising / reworking knowledge in their minds. I'm constantly trying to engage 'leftists' on their misconception of 'free markets' for example.. very frustrating.
@@joansparky4439 dont bring up politics randomly, that might help...
@@joansparky4439 Most people do not constantly talk about politics, because they realize that it isn't relevant in a lot of situations. I'm constantly trying to engage 'rightists' and 'leftists' on their misconception of 'the relevance of politics in discussions that have nothing to do with politics' for example.. very frustrating.
@@Smileyreal I noted the high level sarcasm, funny. Anyhow _"it isn't relevant in a lot of situations"_ politics is the realm that affects your day to day life on all levels as it directly interferes with your ability to create / convert / exchange resources with other people. If we'd be existing in wilderness you'd have a point, but not for our complex and sophisticated interdependent societies whose living standard depends on the systems / processes / frameworks working efficiently. But they don't, because politics makes a mess of it.
Respect for referring us to the Tim Traveller's video on the Wuppertal Schwebebahn as well as your own!
I've just been made fun of for a whole weekend, because I made 11 of my friends ride the Schwebebahn. When they finally got me to admit why I booked the hotel for our surprise trip in Wuppertal of all places, a barrage of insulting commentary ensued.
It's Tom's fault that I'm going to be made fun of and called a massive nerd for years to come. I would never have discovered either the Schwebebahn or the Tim Traveller if it hadn't been for him.
My family and I detoured to Wuppertal from our trip to Cologne just to go on the Schwebebahn. Totally worth it! Your friends are objectively incorrect. :P
Tim's videos are so incredibly enjoyable.
You need new friends bud.
I had seen these in Cinque terra Italy servicing cliffside vineyards, and thought they looked incredibly improvised and scary, however this video proved me wrong!
Reminds me of the monorail system on Hallasan on Jeju island in South Korea. There are two that go about halfway up the mountain to rest stations. They are used both for cargo and in case people get injured on the hike.
2:49 Provides two full seconds of "Tom Scott Quietly Enjoying Himself" footage.
The vineyards around the cliffs of Cinque Terre in Italy use the same kind of monorails for the harvest and to move supplies to the vineyard. Plus, the view is unbeatable.
but why not use car/truck? are the vinyards not connected to any roads?
@@tonyphelps6723 This can get into much tighter corners and inclines, requires much less dedicated space and can actually get in among the vine ranks.
As a lifelong railway enthusiast with an interest in oddball railways, this is something entirely new to me. A combined lightweight economical monorail and rack railway is definitely unique. Good find!
that last shot of the bumper being almost bumped....what a tease
"I have a history with monorails" is a weirdly concerning phrase
“Well, Tom, there's nothing on Earth like a genuine, bona fide, electrified, six-car monorack!”
Is there a chance the track could bend?
@@jeffwatkins72 Not on your life, my UA-cam friend!
I am not sure "electrified" is the correct word ...
Sorry @@Kyrelel, the mob has spoken!
The ring came off my pudding can
I like that he specifies that this isn't an advert, as if some of might be compelled to buy this very niche monorail for our personal alpine transportation needs.
I love how it looks simple yet very well engineered it is. It's the type of construction for when you want something to do its job well and reliably, not when you want something fancy.
When you see something like this, you know it's the best solution for the job.
You can really tell it's the result of a long period of iteration. There's just a certain way things look that have been developed and used for decades and pared down to their essentials.
or the cheapest
The only monorail I'm enthusiastic about is the one that runs between the parks at Disney World. And the downsides are fine because it's as much an attraction as transportation.
Most of the full-sized passenger monorails out there are amusement rides or tourist attractions that were to some degree inspired by the Disney ones. I think it's safe to say that that's the primary niche the monorail has found, where the novelty of the system is a draw, and you don't need too many switches--but this is another application. It appears that with the Monorack you don't really need a switch at all, because it's just a shuttle rather than a closed circuit.
I also love Monorails like the Wuppertal one, it’s a great system that works well considering the very limited space and doesn’t block too much sunlight. I think you could probably find places for them in other cities too, but in most places a subway is usually preferable, Wuppertal couldn’t have that due to soil conditions.
I was wondering if anyone had created a custom body for this monorail to give it the appearance of a miniature Disney monorail.
Disney.. who? Oh the former family media company ?
Found your videos about a month ago and have been rapidly consuming your back catalogue, Tom! Love them! Really really fun and informative! Loved to see you finally found a worthwhile monorail! The only thing I wished was to see what it hauled, but that's not a complaint; your series are awesome! Thank you for all that hard work!
Some other commentor wrote that this monorail is used by a restaurant uphill.
So I guess: Customers are being transported. Probably the ones, that do not want ore are able of mountain walking.
@@LoneStarr1979 Cool thanks for the info!
There are monorails in mining operations here in Germany as well. Since the ceiling needs to be supported anyway, you can also suspend a rail, which can then be used to transport heavy equipment and personal in a narrow space where the ground also isn't suitable for rail construction.
Being proven wrong is one of the best feelings. I'm glad you found something so exciting.
Most of the people avoid it like the plague though as it means they have to spend energy rearranging knowledge.
@@joansparky4439 Actually ive heard it touches the same place in the brain as physical pain sometimes
@@ciarangale4738 well, that is just demoralizing. But thanks for letting me know. 😕
@@joansparky4439 I dont have any sources, do your own research. id imagine it goes something like as follows. If, like Tom, youre researching something and are forced to conclude a certain way, then find information to the contrary, it can be exciting. If, however, you personally believe you are right about something and are not looking to answer a question, then your brain doesnt like it
@@ciarangale4738 already looked it up.. cognitive dissonance (WP). I remember it being not easy to change an opinion when confronted with contrary info, but not that it was painful. But that info was in there somewhere between the lines.
@1:43 I don't know why this shot made me laugh so hard, but it did.
bro said: 🧎
I want one! It looks like it could be a lot of fun in the right setting.
Monorails in Japan, e.g. in Kobe, are good because unmanned, give access to an offshore island and don't require alterations at ground level; just posts to hold it up.
Thank GOODNESS, I can’t tell you how pressed and perturbed I’ve felt about the entire wholly unnecessary monorail industry up until this very moment
Wait until you hear about tri-rails
@@TomGibson. most subways are technically tri-rails right? 2 for riding 1 for power?
I've heard about this before! They have a couple of them in Brockway, Ogdenville, and North Haverbrook. It sure put them on the map.
The Las Vegas monorail feels like quite a good implementation. It goes over roads and walkways, and was built over existing areas, without effecting anything on the ground. I cant imagine trains busses or trams being able to go into a casinos one after the other and on to the convention centre so easily...
You're a genius. The quality and quantity in your videos is incredible. Especially considering you produce many that are under 5 minutes. Such a sweet spot for the average attention span.
The view at 2:57 is insane
Finally a new video from my favorite monorail UA-camr!
I love the enthusiasm for being proven wrong. This! This is my existence! One can never consistently be right if they aren't overjoyed by learning something new when they find out they are wrong.
You’re absolutely right…or are you?
@@tingledinkle You tell me
Love watching Tom grow
Looks like he's truly conquered his fear of rollercoasters...
At that speed and so close to the ground? 😜
Saw a ton of those while I was living in Japan. Lots of them used on farms built on steep terrain. I think I actually commented about it on the previous monorail video that you mentioned in this video.
Edit: fixed unclear language.
I live in Wellington, New Zealand. Wellington is a very hilly city and there are about 300 private cable cars which take people from the street up or down to their houses. I've never thought about it before but most of the private cable cars are monorails.
Reminds me of the inclinators (incline passenger lifts) that are used prolifically on steep residential properties in Sydney and elsewhere on the east coast of Australia (and probably in other places too - I’ve just not been there!). Except of course an inclinator only has a cabin for standing up and I’ve never see one go around corners!
Hey Tom,
You might be interested to know that in the region where I come from we have the so-called "Felsengarten Besigheim" those are very steep vineyards and monorails are used there to help the farmers get acess to their grapes. On a quick search I found video from another wine region titled "Monorackbahn Calmont Bergfahrt" not sure if this counts as monorail but here you go.
You find the most fascinating things in the world
Hi Tom, I did ride on that Mono rail in Wuppertal Germany....What a feat of engineering that is, given it's age !! Thanks for the vids mate
It's a cogwheel railway that is ALSO a monorail, built by a ropeway company. That makes it absolutely, fatally irresistible to transportation geeks. For it to actually be a viable, practical product is icing on the cake.
I assumed it wasn't intended for passenger transport, and maybe this one isn't, but the company does list passenger transport as an application.
The monorail enthusiasts still hold a grudge, watch out Tom.
True, they have a one-track mind
@@MerchManDan this is the best joke I've ever heard that uses this response. 😂
@@MerchManDan Excellent. Positively excellent.