Seattle Monorail trip from Westlake Center downtown to Seattle Center - and back again!
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2023
- The Seattle Monorail opened to the public on March 24, 1962 nearly one month before the start of the World’s Fair. At a cost of $3.5 million, the trains carried more than eight million guests during the six months of the fair, easily paying for the cost of construction. The full initial capital cost of the system was recovered and a profit was realized by ALWEG before the end of the fair. Following the Fair, the Monorail system was turned over to Century 21 Corporation at no cost. Century 21 sold the system to the City of Seattle in 1965 for $600,000.
Seattle Center Monorail system is composed of two trains and a fixed guideway. Each train runs on its own dedicated “rail,” which is composed of 68 y-shaped columns supporting pairs of concrete beams, which span the columns. The typical pre-stressed concrete beams are approximately 70ft long. The highest columns are around 30ft overhead. The guideway is just under 1 mile in length at the present day, but when it was built in 1962, it extended beyond Westlake Center and was a little longer than 1 mile. Construction of the guideway began in April 1961 and was completed in January 1962.
There are two trains: Blue Train and Red Train. The trains were built by ALWEG Rapid Transit Company in West Germany in 1961, and were shipped to New York City where they were placed on traditional rail cars and transported to Seattle. Blue Train arrived before Red Train, and was placed on the beam in February 1962. On March 3, 1962, Blue Train made its first test run.
Each train has 64 tires: 16 load-carrying tires ride on top of the beam, and 48 guide tires run along the sides of the beam for alignment purposes. The 16 load tires run as duals in eight wheel/suspension assemblies called “bogies.” Each bogie has 2 load tires, 6 guide tires, an air suspension system, a 700VDC motor, gearbox and drive train, and a brake assembly. The motors were manufactured by GE and the gear boxes were built by Rockwell.
The Monorail trains run on 700 volts DC, which is supplied to the trains through contact rails on each beam. Carbon shoes contact the copper-headed rail to transfer power to the propulsion system, which in turn supplies current to the DC motors.
In 2021, Seattle Monorail Services completed $7M of privately funded improvements to Westlake Monorail Station. These station improvements were made as a result of the 2018 Seattle Center Monorail Stations Reconfiguration Evaluation Report completed by VIA Architecture. These improvements have increased the system’s capacity, improved accessibility, and better connect the monorail with the regional transit network, downtown transportation infrastructure, and other downtown resources.
All photos and videos on this channel are original content created and produced by Sunny Sky Travel.
Amazing sir
Thanks a lot, glad you liked it and thanks for always leaving your comment!
Very nice, thanks for the ride.
Glad you liked it, thanks for watching!
Thanks for sharing your Seattlle Monorail adventures
nice views @6:39 looks amazing !!
L7
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Wow modern city
Thank you very much for watching and leaving a comment!
Nice to see how the monorail is accessible to begin with, I always pay attention to that. Front row seats are also very enjoyable 😁 The museum is quite eye-catching from above. A friendly driver noticed that they were on camera 🎥😉 You don't get many of them in New York 😄
The one thing I didn't mention is price - it's not cheap, around $6 round trip, pretty pricey for a 2 minute ride each way, but it's a touristy thing so people pay it. First time I've been on it in about 20 years probably, just did it for the video. Thanks for the comment Richard!
So this video appealed to me. This is a comfort that is not seen here in the Czech Republic. Overground railway or train. City transport train. It is a luxury track above the ground at a height. Also convenience. Thank you so much for a real video from America. I see what people in America are like, how they act, how they dress. Movement of people in America. When I am born again (desire and false hope in thinking) I will visit your city and other parts of USA. I won't do it now. That's why I'm grateful for your videos. Or if I win the lottery, I'll hire a tour guide and fly to the US. I would be interested in Florida and Arizona. Thank you for this video. You have a nice city.
Thanks for the comment Bull, always appreciate your watching our channel and writing such kind words! If you win that lottery we will meet you in Seattle!
こんにちは。素晴らしいです。あなたのビデオは素敵ですね。😊
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@@sunnyskytravel4571 😍
😅 Promo*SM
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