Bombardier Innovia Monorail

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Innovia Monorail (stylized as INNOVIA Monorail) is the name given to fully automated and driverless monorail system manufactured by Bombardier Transportation. Its straddle-beam design is based on the ALWEG monorail, which was first developed in the 1950s and later popularized by Disney at their theme parks.

Innovia Monorail 300 in São Paulo, Brazil.

History

Jacksonville Skyway
Las Vegas Monorail
Walt Disney World Monorail

In 1989, Walt Disney World got a new fleet of Mark IV monorail trains built by Bombardier Transportation.[1] Bombardier later supplied its first turnkey monorail system in 1991 to Tampa International Airport in Florida;[2] followed by a contract for JTA Skyway Monorail system in Jacksonville, Florida in 1994.[3] Shortly after, in 1996, Newark Liberty International Airport opened a Von Roll monorail system to connect all its terminals. Von Roll technology was sold to Adtranz and later acquired by Bombardier.[4] These early systems are now grouped under the name Innovia Monorail 100.

In July 2004, Las Vegas opened its 6-mile long Mark IV Las Vegas Monorail monorail system (technology now known Innovia Monorail 200 system).[5] The system suffered from repeated technical difficulties, including parts falling from a moving vehicle, in the first few months of service. The system was temporarily closed for 4 months and reopened in December 2004. Since then, the monorail carries 30,000 passengers daily, despite this it is still not meeting the original ridership estimates.[6]

In 2010, the cities of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and São Paul, Brazil placed orders from Bombardier for its latest Innovia Monorail 300 system. As of 2015, both systems are still in delivery. The Riyadh system is for the new King Abdullah Financial District, which will be a car-free economic hub in the Middle East.[7] The São Paulo system will be part of the city’s mass transit network and serve 17 stations between the residential districts of Vila Prudente and Cidade Tiradentes.[8] Phase 1a opened in August 2014 and includes two stations.[9]

In November 2014, Bombardier signed a Joint Venture (JV) agreement with CSR Puzhen in China to develop and manufacture Innovia Monorail vehicles (as well as Innovia APM vehicles) for the Chinese market.[10]

Technical Characteristics

Innovia Monorails systems have several defining features:

  • Low profile vehicles/low floor height above beam[11]
  • Distinct slopped nose/end-cap
  • Inter-car walkthrough (characteristic of 300 series only)[11]
  • Rubber-tires and permanent magnet motor[11]
  • Aluminium carbody, steel underframe, composite end cap
  • “Warp lights” in the vehicle shirt

Driverless Operation

Innovia Monorails are all fully automated and use a variety of train control technologies. However, the Riyadh and São Paulo monorails are both equipped with CITYFLO 650 communications-based train control.[12] Driverless operation offers many advantages including improved safety, high reliability, shorter headways between trains and lower maintenance costs.

Emergency walkway on Las Vegas Monorail system

Guidebeams

These monorails operate on a narrow, elevated guidebeam. Pre-cast, post-tensioned guidebeams are constructed at an off-site location and later installed on the system. The guidebeams are 690 mm (27 in) wide.[11] The Innovia Monorail 300 was designed to navigate curves as tight as 46 m and a maximum grade of 6%. Monorail switches are either beam replacement or multi-position pivot switches.[13]

Safety

Innovia Monorail systems have evacuation walkways down the entire length of the guidebeam. These walkways allow passengers to escape any onboard hazard. The maintenance crew also uses these walkways for repairs and general maintenance to the system.[14]

Production

The three generations of Innovia Monorails have been assembled in different plants. Today, there are two main production facilities, plus one in Nanjing, China for the JV signed in 2014. The engineering centre for this technology is in Kingston, Canada, which is one of the two main production facilities.[15] It also has a 1.9 km monorail track for dynamic testing. The other major production facility is in Hortolândia, Brazil.[16]

System Implementations

Innovia Monorail 100 systems:

Innovia Monorail 200 systems:

Innovia Monorail 300 systems:

Awards

The Chicago Athenaeum organizes the Good Design Award competition every year. In 2014, the Innovia Monorail 300 was a winner of the Good Design Award in the Transportation 2014 category.[17]

See also

References

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