The Shweeb -- A Human-Powered Monorail

Posted by John Farrier in Science & Tech on July 22, 2009 at 8:11 am


(YouTube Link)

The Schweeb is an experimental transit system in New Zealand that combines the bicycle and a monorail track. Users lie down individual pods and work the pedals to move forward:

Our proposal to get you safely and quickly from one point in the city to another would be to elevate you onto a network of interconnected monorails where you never have to stop at traffic lights. The ideal vehicle for such a system already exists. Fully faired recumbent cycles, because of their low aerodynamic resistance, are breaking all bicycle speed records and currently reaching speeds of 90 kph (56 mph) in sprints. Suspending these comfortable and highly efficient machines from monorail tracks has the added advantage of taking away the rolling resistance of pneumatic tyres. Trains of Shweebs can further reduce the aero drag – ten people travelling at 40 kph will each have a lot less work to do than a single rider at the same speed. A single rider requires only a fraction of the energy to achieve the same speed as a normal cyclist – thanks to the significant reductions in both aero drag and tire friction. The vehicle is completely weatherproof, you can’t derail or fall out while on the cellphone or blackberry!

Link

 
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Deadly Monorail Crash

Posted by Jill Harness in Odd News, Travel & Places on July 5, 2009 at 10:49 pm

This is not a good news story, but you may be interested in known about a tragic accident at Disney World. A train operator died on the Monorail this morning when his monorail crashed into another train. Only a few people were on board.

Link Via BoingBoing

 
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