Aerobus is a self-propelled electrically powered bus-like vehicle riding on a suspended overhead cable. The cable arrangement, similar to a

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

, allows for long spans of up to 600 metres between pylons. The Aerobus system was invented in the late 1960s by Gerhard Mueller of the

GMD Mueller GMD may refer to: * Ben Slimane Airport, in Morocco * Gambian dalasi, the currency of Gambia by ISO 4217 code * Game (retailer), a British video game retailer * GDP-mannose 4,6-dehydratase, in enzymology * General material designation, in library ...

aerial lift company in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. The patents to Aerobus are currently owned by Aerobus International Ltd. of

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Installations

* 1970 – First test track in

Schmerikon Schmerikon is a municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. In the local Swiss German dialect it is called ''Schmerike''. Geography Schmerikon is located at the head of Lake Zu ...

(

) * 1975 – Test track sold and moved to

Mont-Sainte-Anne Mont-Sainte-Anne is a ski resort in Eastern Canada, eastern Canada, located in the town of Beaupré, Quebec, about northeast of Quebec City. The mountain is part of the Laurentian Mountains, Laurentian mountain chain and has a summit elevation o ...

(

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

) where it stayed in operation until 1992. * 1974 New test track in

Dietlikon Dietlikon is a municipality in the district of Bülach in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, and belongs to the Glatt Valley (German: ''Glattal''). History Dietlikon is first mentioned in 1124 as ''Dietlinchoven''. Geography Dietlikon has an ...

(

). * 1975 Temporary installation in

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...

(

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

) with 8 cars and 2.2 million people transported in six months. * 1992 (not installed) - awarded Phase I planning study funding for Milwaukee County, (

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

) Regional Medical Center. * 2000 (not installed)– Chinese city of

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...

awards a contract to Aerobus for a 2.6 km system with three stations that crosses the Yangtze and Jialing rivers in the downtown area, with pylons up to 300 ft high. This was project was apparently cancelled, as the rapidly growing city installed bigger, more costly transit modes instead. * 2007 (not installed)– Final approval for construction of a 4.2 km-long installation carried by eight pylons in

Weihai Weihai (), formerly called Weihaiwei (), is a prefecture-level city and major seaport in easternmost Shandong province. It borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east, and is the closest Chinese city to South Korea. Weihai's popula ...

(

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

). The system would connect Liugong Island with the mainland city of Weihei, with a large observation-tower station in the center. According to a company spokesman in early 2009 construction was underway on the $100 million Weihai line, with completion originally scheduled for 2011. However the project seems to have been cancelled or stalled as there are no further reports of any progress. * 2013 (proposal)- Reports indicate that as of August 2013 the company is seeking to sell the system in Quito, Ecuador * Proposed

Malacca Aerorail Melaka Aerorail is a proposed monorail line to be constructed in Malacca City. It will be constructed in two phases, 9.5 km for the first one with another at 8.7 km. The cost of construction is expected to be around RM1.8 Billion. If it is ...

is supposed to use Aerobus technology * Proposed

Phnom Penh Phnom Penh (; km, ភ្នំពេញ, ) is the capital and most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since the French protectorate of Cambodia and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its economic, indus ...

Skytrain is prefer to use Aerobus technology than AGT

References

{{reflist

External links

Official Aerobus web pageAerobus by Parks corporate videoAerobus container transportation demo videoPromotional video for design of tourist-oriented Weihai Aerobus line & sightseeing tower
Suspended monorails Cable cars in Switzerland Aerial tramways in China Aerial tramways