Abstract
The presentation is going to discuss the potential use of cable cars for Transit Oriented Development (TOD). aerial cable cars might at first appear to be an unusual solution they offer a number of advantages. The presentation is going to highlight and discuss them. Transport Planning and Land Use Planning were treated as separate disciplines and their mutual impact was little considered. A separation of “transport” as a land use from other uses was a common planning approach. The separation of land uses also led to urban sprawl and growing distances between residential areas and areas for work or other activities. The private motorised vehicle became the preferred mode of transport as it was perceived as the most convenient way to move around. Access to public transport was difficult in ever growing low density suburban neighbourhoods. Transit Oriented Development (TOD) aims to reverse this trend. Development is centred around stops of public transport. The density of development becomes higher the closer to public transport. With this basic principle more people live and work in walkable distance to public transport. When access is easy, it encourages the use of public transport. TOD faces the criticism that it is only suitable for a linear development along the transport corridor. A linear transport corridor is going to create a barrier for movement separating the areas to both sides of it. It can be argued that this depends on the design of the transport corridor but it is indisputable that a tram line or a bus corridor create some barrier for pedestrian movement and that it will be necessary to create dedicated crossing points which can affect the performance of trains and buses. Aerial cable cars operate above ground level. Their physical footprint on the ground is limited to the stations and the towers which keep the steel rope in its position. The space below the aerial cable car line can be dedicated to other uses. Either as a public open space for or for built structures potentially increasing the amount of real estate for sale. This would present an important commercial argument in favour of the cable car. Even though aerial cable cars haven’t been used for TOD yet, there are cities worldwide that use cable cars in their respective public transport networks. That created examples of how to integrate cable car infrastructure into the urban realm. New station typologies include mixed-use station buildings, a sunken cable car station or a station integrated into a high-rise building as well as stations and their surroundings designed as multi-modal transport hubs. Best practice of existing examples serves as a source of reference for TOD with cable cars. Finally the use of aerial cable car for TOD will be illustrated with a case study of a proposed project. This project will help to support urban regeneration of the affected area and in the long term introduce a new urban design centred around cable car stations. The area is in a prime location but lacks of a transport link to the existing business district. A reliable transport link is vital for the success of the regeneration. It is also vital to allow for a phased implementation. The aerial cable car allows to keep the impact on the existing urban fabric to a minimum until larger interventions can be realised. The cable car is also conceived as an integrated component of a planned future multimodal public transport network. It can be concluded that aerial cable cars are well suited for Transit Oriented Development. Best practice from existing urban cable car installations can be applied.
