Comments for The American Monorail Project

Comment on The American Monorail Project by Gerald Lundgren

Gerald Lundgren — Tue, 10 Jun 2014 16:02:40 +0000

This is the future! Iron rail is a 200 year-old invention that is outdated. Monorails obviously are simpler to get tracks on the ground or should I say in the air. How easy would it be to switch out down the road to maglev? Los Angeles has spent tons of money on their rail and it sucks! I’m sure they could have 20 times or more lines in place than they’ve got now if they were to have used monorail technology. The Red Line is the worst, and they are not even done. Anyone who doubts the simplicity of this system can just look at what Disney has had in Anaheim for years, albeit at scale and which I’m sure the technology of today could make even better. The Gold Line can’t even make it to Whittier – what a joke! If it was a monorail no problem! Put a monorail right down the 5 Freeway! Actually, this was proposed years ago, but oil and other interests shut it down. Do it like they did in 1800′s – the first one to the middle wins a huge bonus and we can be done instead of our having to live with the never ending rail projects!

Comment on Our Mission by Apostle,Dr.,E.Earl Scott

Apostle,Dr.,E.Earl Scott — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 01:05:12 +0000

Greetings to Eric Wickland, President/CEO of American Monorail. It was indeed a spiritually enlightening pleasure to meet you at the Sheriff/Clergy Council LA County meeting 12/18/12.

As Founder of Synergistic Implements & Associates (SIA), a professional consulting firm specializing in building infracommunities, and as Founder of Black Foundation Center Int’l, a non-profit CBO since 1993, I am honored and would like to partner with American Monorail. As we briefly discussed The Proposed Crenshaw Corridor Rail Project (PCCRP) is full of many questionable unsound features that significantly impact and undermine the social, fiscal, environmental, and the well being of true American Citizens. These gross negative effects of the PCCRP should immediately be considered in relation to the American Monorail Project which is its alternative and worthy replacement.

As we reflected, in the Spirit of USA, and our legacy, in building this great nation under the banner of the steel, auto, entertainment, monorail transportation systems, and other industries from within, I look forward to working with you to achieve the worthy goal of restoring our legacy which is under unrelenting serious assault.

Comment on California High-Speed Monorail System by David Cohen

David Cohen — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 22:39:47 +0000

This strikes me as a wonderful idea. I have discussed such a concept for some time here in Texas, but your project is much further along in its conception. Obviously, execution will be very challenging. I believe that a similar proposal would apply with equal validity here in Texas — connecting, Austin with Dallas to the north, San Antonio to the southwest, and Houston to the southeast, along the medians of I-35 and I-10. Presumably, and with appropriate federal/state involvement, the often prohibitively expensive cost of obtaining right-of-way either directly or by condemnation would be eliminated. The population densities and relative proximity of these cities to one another would lend themselves very well to such travel.

Does the high-speed monorail technology exist today to make such an enterprise feasible?

Assuming that the federal and state governments have neither the means nor the will to bring such a project off, but would welcome this boon to the infrastructure, I propose presenting a detailed plan to a private investor — such as Warren Buffett, who has the financial wherewithal and ought to see the benefits of building and owning such a system, If even Buffett might balk at a price tag perhaps north of $10 billion, he likely has a few colleagues who would be interested in investing. High speed rail was considered here in Texas several years ago; however, the fledgling Southwest Airlines — heavily dependent on the Dallas-Houston-Austin traffic — effectively killed the plan. Southwest is no longer a local airline fearful of such competition — or, at least, not so fearful as to present a formidable opposition, especially given all the benefits this project will bring to the environment and the economy.

I would be delighted to assist in helping to bring this project to completion and on-going success.

Comment on The American Monorail Project website by Eric Wickland

Eric Wickland — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 14:37:15 +0000

Thank you for your comment, Frank. We did indeed consider adding MagLev systems to our website's Comparative Matrix as an eighth mode, but we are lacking technical and video materials necessary for an adequate presentation. We would welcome an opportunity to include MagLev technology and systems in our broader discussion of Monorails, and their applications to urban and inter-city transportation systems. As we have noted in our discussion of potential extension of a Shanghai Disney Monorail system into the heart of the city, variable and low speed MagLev systems appear to be highly adaptable to merging high speed MagLev with urban MagLev and other mass transportation systems. For background, we refer readers to the "maglev" Wikipedia entry.

Comment on California High-Speed Monorail System by Lawrence Calabro

Lawrence Calabro — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 00:21:56 +0000

Almost 50 years ago while attending the Mechanical Engineering Show in NYC I saw a demonstration of an underslung high speed monorail system by a company from Washington State. I was impressed then as I am now with the technology, that was 50 years ago and sad to say the technology has not been utilized to any great degree (tranportation wise) in our nation. Its benifits were apparent then as they are now but yet there is still resistance to its implimentation, can you or anyone else explain this. I think what you propose is a marvelous idea it addresses most if not all of the mass trasit problems within the state. I would if I had anything to do with its planning (I guess once an engineer always an engineer even though retired) see provisions for comercial container tranportation via the system.

Comment on About Us by Eric Wickland

Eric Wickland — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:37:19 +0000

Thank you, Don. Since you have already contacted the American Monorail Project, we encourage further exploration of the American Monorail website, and suggest that you explore the Monorail Society website (monorails.org) to which you can subscribe to their mailing list or become a member.

Comment on The American Monorail Project website by Frank Genadio

Frank Genadio — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 11:14:56 +0000

Please consider adding magnetic levitation systems to your Website. “Maglevs” are basically modern monorail technology. Urban maglev (virtual) “clones” of the Nagoya Linimo are now under development in Beijing and Incheon. American Maglev is trying to gain some “traction” in Orlando but airport authorities are concerned about (of all things) loss of rental car income. In the high-speed realm, James Powell and Gordon Danby, holders of the first generation superconducting maglev patent on which the Shanghai Transrapid system is based, are now advocating for a nationwide freight and passenger train network (similar to the Interstate Highway system) that would use their second generation superconducting maglev system. Perhaps a public-private long distance high-speed maglev network linked to urban conventional monorail systems would be a “marriage made in heaven.” Aloha from Honolulu, where we may lose even the contracted obsolescent steel wheels on steel rails system if an anti-rail candidate wins the election for mayor next month.

Comment on Monorail-Energy Use by Eric Wickland

Eric Wickland — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 16:29:27 +0000

While monorail technology has been advanced to where monorail vehicles and systems are now capable of generating all electrical power required for full operation of vehicles and systems on board the vehicles completely independent of electrical grids and distribution systems, there is at this time no practical means of generating power to supplement electrical distribution system or grids.

Some research and development in this area could advance monorail technology to the point where excess power, the power beyond what is needed for monorail operation, could be fed into local power grids.

Comment on San Francisco Bay Bridge Monorail by Eric Wickland

Eric Wickland — Sat, 15 Sep 2012 21:40:19 +0000

Since American Monorail’s proposed Bay Bridge monorail is the first such proposal we are aware of, we are unaware of any engineering analysis of such a design. However, adaptation of a steel rail system, similar to the Sydney, Australia monorail, could be modernized and applied to the bridge structures with expected high levels of performance regarding seismic and other dynamic and static loads and performance.

Advancement in monorail construction and technology have led to he production of monorail rolling stock vehicles that are of significantly lighter weight, in some cases 10% the weight of “light rail” vehicles, offering significant advantages to the adaptation of monorail systems to existing and future bridge spans, as well as other structures.

Comment on Balboa Park Monorail by Eric Wickland

Eric Wickland — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 18:09:24 +0000

Thank you, Jack. We agree with you that it is a shame that San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) did not select monorail technology for this project. If you have had the opportunity to visit the the American Monorail website’s Comparative Matrix and clicked on the express bus image, you may get an impression of the disadvantages of express bus systems that are superimposed on existing streets and neighborhoods. As you begin to point out, the impacts may very well offset any accessibility and mobility advantages that the systems may create and are invariably cost-ineffective in every regard.