NEATORAMA HOME | LITE/MOBILE VERSION | BEST OF NEATORAMA

Cable Train Runs on the Weight of Sewage

By Queuebot in Odd News on Sep 17, 2009 at 11:18 am


Kris at Low Tech Magazine explains how furniculars, those cable trains that were built up the sides of hills and mountains, often ran on water! The two cars were
connected by cables, so you added 400 gallons of water to the one at the top, to make it heavy enough to roll down the hill while pulling up the lighter one at the bottom.

In Fribourg, Switzerland, they had a much better idea. One area in town is at the top of a hill, and the other at the bottom, separated by about 375 feet of elevation. And if there is one thing that is always flowing from the top to the bottom, it is sewage. Instead of running in a pipe, they pump some of it into the car at the top; at the bottom, they open it up and let it run into the lower sewer.

Link – via treehugger

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by christackett.


Share


COMMENT
  1. Christophe
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 12:35 pm

    Does it smell like sewer too?

  2. Kalel
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 12:36 pm

    Now I know what my grandmother meant when she'd say things like, "I don't have enough poop to get up those stairs."

  3. Skipweasel
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 1:07 pm

    So - if you want to go - you have to go?

  4. contron
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 1:08 pm

    Someday I'm going to live in one of these and open up a theme park.

  5. Tim Giachetti
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 1:56 pm

    "Wonder Twins Power Acticate!!
    Shape of a Train!!

    Form of an Outhouse!"

    Hmmmm not as I imagined it at all! :P

  6. Chris Monty
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 2:38 pm

    Wow, I bet that train smells lovely.

  7. Skipweasel
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 2:48 pm

    @Chris Monty: No worse than most.

  8. Grandnom
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 3:27 pm

    To all those who are asking if the trains smell.

    Haven't you noticed the non-sewage powered trains in the USA are not exactly odor free? HMMMMM?

  9. felixthecat
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 6:10 pm

    Perhaps the trains can run on the sewage some in the art world foist upon us, and that the aesthetes are so fond of rolling in. *cough* tin foil ball *cough*

  10. dutchboy
    Sep 17th, 2009 at 10:25 pm

    I love these things.

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT

Neatorama Comment Policy
You don't have to register or login to comment, but it's easier if you do so. Comments aren't censored, but those that are abusive or off-topic may be edited or deleted.


Keep track of the comments with Comment RSS

Lijit Search

T-SHIRTS FROM THE NEATORAMA SHOP

WRITE YOUR OWN NEATORAMA POST
Got a neat story? Share it with the world by writing your very own Neatorama blog post with the Upcoming Queue. Who knows, you might just win something ...

Here's how to get started:
FAQ | Tips