Seventies Monorail Project

[Ousetunes]

Sheffield City Council has never been shy when it comes to transport projects like, for example, the idea of Cable Cars which they are presently floating (no pun intended).

 

However, does anyone recall the idea - first mooted in the early seventies I think - of a monorail that would run up Fargate and down the Moor? I recall seeing a superbly illustrated book in school showing the monorail running alongside the shops on Fargate, almost clipped to the second floor of the buildings and then in other places running down the middle of the road - albeit, 20 foot in the air.

 

I think I also remember a picture of the monorail crossing the Hole in the Road. It looked really impressive and I was quite sad the project never materialised.

 

Can anybody else remember the proposed monorail? Does anyone know where all those artists' impressions went to?

 

Was it a good idea? Or was it another case, literally, of pie in the sky? Come on Plain Talker, you'll remember it!

[pberry]

You should see their urban motorways plan!

[Guest unners]

I remember that book from school also. I remember seeing a picture of what it would look like going down High Street with a stop that took you straight into House of Fraser or Rackhams as it was proberly called at around that time.

[tom_common]

my boss at the DWP used to talk about this a lot, it sounded fantastic.

 

He says that the hole in the centre of Moorfoot (the Manpower Services Commission) was built for the monorail, and that there's actually a glassed platfrom area in the building which has never been used.

 

Once it got to the end of the moor, it would come back round to the bottom of the moor. Does anyone know if it was planned to go through the station?

 

Can you imagine how much worse the city would look if a monorail sailed through the air in front of the town hall. Crikey.

[nick2]

Originally posted by tom_common

He says that the hole in the centre of Moorfoot (the Manpower Services Commission) was built for the monorail, and that there's actually a glassed platfrom area in the building which has never been used.

 

You need to get a picture of this platform.

[pberry]

There used to be a ramp coming out of the south end of that building, presumably to connect with a footbridge over Young Street or to another building that was never put up.

 

It was demolished a few years back--and I wish I had a picture of it too, although it didn't seem worth it at the time--but you can still see where it used to be by the small arch set into the buidling.

[ptigga]

A monorail is an excellent idea - it can run above congested roads so doesn't require any road space apart from the pillars - Can you imaginge a monorail all the way along Eccashall Road, then up the middle of the ring road to terminate at the University tram stop. I imagine that it would be cheaper to build pillars than it would be to dig tunnels, and the monorail could also run at ground level when it makes sense.

 

It would be ace!

 

A problem with this idea is that disabled access has to be provided at every stop - which means expensive lifts, or long long ramps.

[nick2]

Originally posted by ptigga

A problem with this idea is that disabled access has to be provided at every stop - which means expensive lifts, or long long ramps.

 

Or anti-gravity tubes.

[beansfeast]

Or just simply upright wind tunnels...

 

I think the monorail would be a fantastic idea, though I'm sure those same bl**dy drivers who use bus lanes during congestion times would find a way to use the monorail tracks aswell...

[Bilge]

Aren't those 'Maglev'/Eric Laithwaite linear motor thingies a sort of monorail? One of those would be good for a circle line round the city centre and serving the station and hospitals. It could go in the middle of the ringroad and plug the big electromagnet into the Moore St substation.