New Cable-Car for London: "Emirates Air Line"

[Islander]

Seriously don't understand what anyone's got against the Towers ones - they're great. Clean, seats are comfortable, they're generally nice to be in. The only concern I had was the capacity - I did expect similar gondolas, just bigger. Wouldn't be surprised if they went for the metal seats either.

Is it just me, or does the Orbit look like an Intamin Rocket for Stratford? :P

Just looks like a dumped pile of scaffolding to me - it's hideous...

[CoasterCrazyChris]

Seriously don't understand what anyone's got against the Towers ones - they're great. Clean, seats are comfortable, they're generally nice to be in. The only concern I had was the capacity - I did expect similar gondolas, just bigger. Wouldn't be surprised if they went for the metal seats either.

Honestly, where do you want me to start?

To start with the positives, they are most definetly clean and modern. So, in that repect they are far superior to the old ones obviously. Now if that's your criteria for judging how good they are then I suppoose they are great.

However in my opinion there is much more to it than that. They are UGLY. Both in terms of colour scheme and shape of the gondolas themselves, to the point where I would consider them eyesores in every part of the park they travel over.

Then there's the issue of capacity, which is less than the old ones. Finally, they are not really comfortable to sit in at all as the benches are hard. I reckon the park must have bought them on the cheap, they must be Poma's most basic gondola.

[Islander]

However in my opinion there is much more to it than that. They are UGLY. Both in terms of colour scheme and shape of the gondolas themselves, to the point where I would consider them eyesores in every part of the park they travel over.

My personal preference differs a fair bit from yours then - they're sodding beautiful :P. I think, if we're talking purely aesthetically, they're a massive improvement over the old ones. I think the shape is beautiful, and the colours vivid and exciting - they really scream 'magic' to me, and look excellent going over the valley etc. Perhaps that's just me.

I don't have a problem with the benches at all - they're comfortable enough. More comfortable than, say, the new benches in the CCL Theatre.

As for the capacity, didn't realise it'd decreased. It'd certainly be good if it were a little higher, and (to keep on topic) it certainly seems like a tiny capacity for the cable car in London.

[Bote]

I agree with Islander here. I think the new Sigma Diamond gondolas look brilliant. They are a very simple and modern design. Granted, the assortment of colours used at Towers may not be to everyone's taste, but personally I think it works well. They always look very nice gilding over the gardens in the summer, with all the different colours of the gardens and plants below. The only point where I would say they are massively noticeable is when looking over to Mutiny Bay from the Towers, but even then when you are actually in the area I don't think they are too noticeable being overhead. There's only really the decent into the Towers Street station where they are noticeable, and even then I would say that happens right on the border with Towers Street and Mutiny Bay so hardly ruins much of the atmosphere

Throughput wise, yes they may have slightly reduced it, but at the same time I think I'd accept that as a tradeoff for a newer, fresher look. Also if you ask me in London I can see this working well. Lots of individual gondolas means that in theory the queues and waits should be constantly moving. As oppose to waiting a longer time then all moving together. Duel is a prime example of how rolling loading works if you ask me. Which you may have to wait a bit longer the fact you are nearly always moving makes this far less noticeable. Transport for London aren't that stupid. They'll have looked into all the options when planning this, and will have their reasons for making the decision they have

I don't think it's massively fair to compare them to the Towers ones. Aside from the shape I doubt they are going to be too similar. I can't imagine TfL opting for muticoloured gondolas personally :P

[DiogoJ42]

The gondolas work well at Towers (the only place I feel they clash is in Dark Forrest). But I was hoping for something a bit bigger for this project. They are hardly "grand", are they?

[Blaze]

Wow, those gondolas are disappointing. Was expecting something bigger and more interesting to look at.

They work great at Towers, but for this sort of project, you'd really expect something more special.

[Islander]

Just found a video that's been hidden on the TfL YouTube feed for over a month now - shows the entire project (in CGI) very clearly :P. Linky

It shows the gondolas - they are indeed Sigma gondolas, like the Skyride gondolas at Towers but (wait for it...) smaller (!), with two upholstered, five-seat benches:







Edit: According to TfL, there'll be a gondola every 30 seconds - 10 people every 30 seconds gives a throughput of 1,200pph. Less when you take into account wheelchairs, bicycles etc.

I'm no public transport expert, but under 1,200pph strikes me as very low...

[DiogoJ42]

Wha wha whaaaaa??

[Sam]

The throughput's actually lower than Towers'...?

It seems madness, but I'm sure TfL will have done a lot of research. They'll have come up with a best estimate of how heavily they think the cable car will be used, and will have made purchase choices accordingly.

They may have got it wrong, but who knows, maybe 1,200pph will be roughly how many people will actually use the service. If there's never a queue, it's actually good having smaller gondolas, as you get a better view and experience!

[Bote]

Wow... That is very low! :O

However, thinking about it, how many regular London commuters are going to use this daily? I can think of a fair amount of people who refuse to use Skyride at Alton out of fear of heights and one thing and another. I can see that some people will not use it for that reason, and some may just stick to what they are familiar with and continue to go the same route they would now.

I guess that could counteract it somewhat, but it's still surprisingly low! The more I look at this, the more I see it as nothing more than a tourist attraction, as oppose to a viable inner city transport device.

On a happier note though, if at night the supports are lit as shown in the video Islander posted this is going to look beautiful

[Sam]

As I've said before, this was clearly never meant to be anything more than a tourist attraction. That's perfectly fine, if it can make the money back. The London Eye is nothing more than a tourist attraction. It was never meant to be a "viable inner city transport device"! :P

[Bote]

The London Eye is nothing more than a tourist attraction. It was never meant to be a "viable inner city transport device"! :P

Well yeah, that's because it goes to and from the same place... A giant wheel would be one of the most impractical transport systems ever created. It's like a tube train that goes around a track with only one station :P

This on the other hand transports people from one place to another. I understand that it always will be a transport method one way or another while both stations are used for boarding, but the fact TfL seem to have been backing the project would suggest that it is intended as an expansion to their network. However, it really doesn't feel like it at the moment given the low throughput and things. Instead, it does feel like the London Eye, where it's main aim is to attract tourists.

This is what I don't understand. Why would TfL be backing a project that is a tourist attraction? It'll be interesting to see if it remains a TfL service throughout it's life or wether it is eventually sold on to someone else.

[SpinballEdders]

1,200PPH is VERY low for something in London. Imagine if the tube only had 1,200PPH on each line? That would be a nightmare! But this shouldn't be too bad as the route is quite short

[Big Dave]

Thing is, if they are going to charge £20 (joking) each way, then they wont get many on it :P

[Islander]

I'm guessing a similar fare to an Oyster tube journey for non-oyster passengers, and cheaper still for Oyster...

Don't forget, it links ExCeL and the O2 directly, which will be invaluable for the Games, and hopefully fairly useful thereafter what with the regeneration going on in both regions. Hence my concern that it has such a low capacity.

Given how carefully TfL are integrating it into the network (for example, it's already on all the Tube maps, and will accept Oyster), I really can't see them ever 'disowning' it - it'd be madness.

A giant wheel would be one of the most impractical transport systems ever created.

I dunno - I'm imagining a giant wheel tacked to the side of the cliff, with a second 'station' at the top. There must be somewhere in the world that idea could be used :P

[Big Dave]

In theory a Paternoster is a similar thing. Loads of cars fastened to a rotating belt/chain.

[Dormiens-Dave]

One Dispatch every 30 seconds is quite slow as well, I've double checked on a video of skyride and they can on full pelt it seems dispatch every 20 seconds.

[Islander]

They're getting 34 gondolas - dunno how long the cable is, but I'd guess there isn't the capacity for faster dispatches, even with all gondolas on the cable, and that doesn't account for any in maintenance etc.

The crossing is supposed to take around five minutes, which seems a nice length - not to long to get bored, but long enough to appreciate the views.

[DiogoJ42]

Maybe they will be running at a lower speed that Towers', so that they don't have to stop the cable for disabled passengers? I would imagine a lot of people would get freaked out if the gondola stopped dead and started swinging back and forth

[Sam]

I dunno - I'm imagining a giant wheel tacked to the side of the cliff, with a second 'station' at the top. There must be somewhere in the world that idea could be used :P

The defunct Hard Rock Park were getting there with their hybrid coaster/ferris-wheel "Maximum RPM!":