As part of a series of articles on the future of transportation in the U.S., the Wall St. Journal says the time may finally have arrived for the retro-futurism of the monorail.
Previously seen as too small and too slow, says writer Paulo Trevisani, monorails are finding a niche as an inexpensive way to bridge tricky bottlenecks. New monorails are springing up around the world in cities like Chongqing, Mumbai, Riyadh, and São Paulo.
Trevisani writes:
"These efforts, some say, may test whether monorail technology can live down its reputation and win over critics, who remain skeptical that monorails are suitable for urban mass transit."
Japan was an early adopter, and may provide clues to how effective a monorail system can be in practice.
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