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Originally Posted by officedweller
But gondolas don't stop moving around the turn when loading passengers, do they?
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mac Write
No they don't. The problem with the wheelchair as I see it. They have to enter, then get parked while others wait. THis will take about 10-20 seconds. Say the doors at least as wide as a Mark II Skytrain, the wheelchair will still slow loading. Maybe the wheelchair spots will be opposite the door which would be the fastest for loading, but unloading they have to backup (say a scooter) I could see problems doing it in enough time.
I think what they could do, is have the cabin come to the unload and do a complete stop with the "Skytrain Chime" after 30 seconds and then it starts moving to the loading area. At the loading area it could stop again for 30 seconds. Of course if people hold the doors, then the entire system will callapse.
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No they don't stop completely, but like I said earlier, a gondola goes incredibly slow at the station areas. There aren't too many videos out there, but this is Nong Ping 360 at Hong Kong. Notice how slow it goes as it approaches this area for about 25 sounds - and this isn't a station.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIFSTvD4yiQ&t=1m7s
In Gondola systems, there are generally two "platforms" or "bays" for the lack of a better word: one for unloading and the other for loading. As a gondola car approaches the station, it begins to slow down until it reaches a safe speed for disembarkation (as per speed in the above video). As long as the length of the unloading bay is long enough, then there's way more than enough time for wheelchair users to embark and disembark. After passing the unloading bay, the gondola car turns around before going to the loading bay, where it then spends another X amount of seconds loading.
These gondola cars TransLink is proposing are going to be large with a lot of open space, making it a bit easier for wheelchair users to navigate (to put in perspective, the London Eye capsules accommodate approximately 20 people, TransLink is thinking 30-35). And, if a wheelchair user couldn't disembark on the unloading platform for whatever reason, they can always disembark on the loading platform, and then TransLink can send an open cell up. The next one arrives in less than a minute anyways. Plus, I'm sure there will always be staff at both ends of the gondola that can help in these situations.