https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq Take a look at the Suspension Railway in Germany! en-us 2023-02-06 04:21:30 UTC 2023-02-09 00:55:37 UTC hello@padlet.com https://i.ytimg.com/vi/JGqvLHn_o9c/maxresdefault.jpg 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2469511765 Here is the glimpse of the suspension railway in Wuppertal, German! There is a variety of colors but this soft blue one is my favorite. Now, let me tell you further information about this rare suspension railway. ]]> 2023-02-06 04:54:43 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2469511765 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471285651 A rarely suspended railway opened in 1901 in the highlands of Wuppertal, Germany. This is the world's oldest monorail system and the only one of its kind. It's incredible to observe how this centuries-old mode of transportation continues to provide fast, efficient, smooth, pollution-free, and traffic-free transportation today! The new trains introduced in 2017 are sleek and modern. They have a sightseeing window in the back that allows you to see the river and city from above!]]> 2023-02-07 06:55:10 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471285651 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471292767 The Schwebebahn's most well-known passenger to date, Tuffi the elephant, who was even more well-known than the Kaiser, rode on it in 1950.

The juvenile pachyderm, who at the time was a small star in West Germany, was in town for the Althoff Circus' promotional trip. Because Tuffi was usually unafraid of humans, the proprietor of the circus, Franz Althoff, frequently utilized her to promote his act.

Her first Schwebebahn ride seemed to go well. She boarded the train at the station at Wuppertal-Barmen. But because the carriage was crammed with journalists and authorities, Tuffi couldn't turn after a few minutes and worried. She trampled a row of seats before leaping out a window into a river 10 meters (33 feet) below.

Tuffi barely got a few scrapes because the river was only 50 cm (20 inches) deep at that point and the terrain was muddy. Althoff evidently intended to chase her down, but instead proceeded on to the next stop where he raced back to the bewildered elephant and guided it back to the circus camp.

In 2020, artist Bernd Bergkemper created a basalt monument in the precise location where Tuffi landed in 1950.]]> 2023-02-07 07:03:33 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471292767 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471302263 Unfortunately, practically all of the magnificent first-generation carriages have been retired and even the famous GTW 72 carriages inaugurated in 1972 and used for 27 years have been replaced by the sleek blue trains of "Generation 15," which started service in 2016. Even with the new trains, the Schwebebahn remains popular among enthusiasts.]]> 2023-02-07 07:15:55 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471302263 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471307690 Given its remarkable history and unique appearance, it's no surprise that the Schwebebahn has influenced several artworks and German popular culture in general. It was mentioned in Zionist writer and political activist Theodor Herzl's 1902 sci-fi book "Altneuland" (The Old New Land). It appears in filmmaker Wim Wenders' 1974 film "Alice in den Städten," in Tom Tykwer's 2000 drama "Der Krieger und die Kaiserin," and again in a 2011 Wenders film, "Pina," which honors another Wuppertal legend, choreographer Pina Bausch.

In 1893, engineer Eugen Langen presented the suspension railway system to the city, which jumped at the chance. Construction began in 1898 and the line was ceremoniously opened in 1901 with Emperor Wilhelm II and his wife Auguste Viktoria having a test ride.

The elevated track that snakes across the city was built with about 20,000 tonnes of steel. Its 20 stunning art nouveau stations complemented the glass and wood interiors of trains that could hold up to 65 passengers apiece.

The network was completed in 1903, with travels beginning and finishing at turning loops connected to the line's Vohwinkel and Oberbarmen stations. The new railway was well received by the inhabitants. Train lengths were raised from two to six cars with trains operating every five minutes over the following few years.

Passenger counts decreased during World War I, when many Wuppertal employees served in the Kaiser's forces, but by 1925, the network had already ferried 20 million passengers across the peaceful Wupper river.

During WWII, the network was heavily bombed by Allied bombers in massive air attacks on Wuppertal in May and June 1943, and again in January 1945, but by Easter 1946, not nearly a year after the battle in Europe concluded, the whole route was already back in service. Because of its longevity, Rosemarie Weingarten, who was born in Wuppertal's Barmen area in 1933, considers the Schwebebahn to be the city's cultural flagship.]]> 2023-02-07 07:21:26 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471307690 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471309968 I would probably release my tension on a suspension railway because look how calming the view of nature is with the sound of the river. Must be so refreshing! You can also be feeling like a bird because you are floating while watching nature from above. ]]> 2023-02-07 07:23:32 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471309968 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471343111 Today, the gently swaying Schwebebahn is no longer used to transport elephants, but rather as a commuter train, carrying an astounding 25 million people each year pre-Covid.]]> 2023-02-07 07:56:02 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471343111 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471354481 Unlike typical train lines, which are firmly fixed to the ground, suspension railways dangle beneath a track suspended from pylons. Their carriages glide over roads, rivers, and other obstacles, allowing passengers to enjoy the scenery.]]> 2023-02-07 08:04:46 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471354481 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471359438 In "The Flying Train," a voyage on a suspended railway in Germany in 1902 is depicted. The film is almost as astounding as the engineering accomplishment it depicts. Our curators mistook our Mutoscope rolls for slightly smaller 70mm film for many years, but they were really shot on Biograph's special 68mm stock. Researchers visiting the Film Study Center are particularly interested in formats such as Biograph's 68mm and Fox's 70mm Grandeur because the enormous picture area provides outstanding visual clarity and quality, especially when contrasted to more typical 35mm or 16mm stocks.]]> 2023-02-07 08:09:53 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471359438 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471360804 2023-02-07 08:11:16 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471360804 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471362999 Hm, the suspension railway looks kind of dangly up there but I am sure it must be fun sitting in there, feels like I'm on an airplane with a low budget. 

The only operational suspension railways today are in Japan and Germany. And it is in Germany where the first, and still very much the greatest, steampunk attraction, the Wuppertal Schwebebahn, can still be found in all its steampunk grandeur.

It all started in the 1880s, in the latter days of imperial Germany's so-called Gründerzeit era of rapid industrialization. Eugen Langen, a Cologne-based entrepreneur, and engineer, had been experimenting with a suspension railway for transferring commodities at his sugar business.

Meanwhile, Wuppertal, a neighboring city, was experiencing difficulty. The region had grown from a tiny collection of communities along the Wupper river to an urban sprawl of 40,000 people who now needed to go about thanks to a thriving local textile industry. Because traditional rail or tramways were impracticable due to the lengthy and winding river valley, municipal officials requested solutions to remedy the problem, and Langen emerged.]]> 2023-02-07 08:13:24 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2471362999 2020821212 https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2474283089 2023-02-09 00:54:35 UTC https://padlet.com/2020821212/w08fdxbgt3zu18xq/wish/2474283089