Innovia Monorail
| Company type | Product line |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rail transport, Monorail manufacturing |
| Predecessor | ALWEG monorail concept |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Founder | Bombardier Transportation |
Area served | Worldwide (North America, Middle East, South America, Asia) |
| Products | Automated driverless monorail systems (Innovia Monorail 100, 200, 300) |
| Parent | Alstom (after acquisition of Bombardier Transportation) |
Innovia Monorail represents a fully automated, driverless monorail solution produced and promoted by Alstom within its Innovia lineup. Its straddle-beam configuration traces its origins to the ALWEG monorail concept from the 1950s, famously adopted by Disney theme parks.
History
In 1989, Walt Disney World unveiled a new generation of Mark VI monorail trains manufactured by Bombardier Transportation. Bombardier’s first comprehensive monorail system delivery occurred in 1991 at Tampa International Airport, followed by securing the 1994 contract for the Jacksonville Skyway. The AirTrain Newark, launched in 1996, featured a Von Roll monorail linking airport terminals; Von Roll’s technology was subsequently acquired by Bombardier. These initial installations have since been rebranded as Innovia Monorail 100.
The Las Vegas Monorail, spanning six miles and operating Mark IV trains, began service in July 2004 and is currently identified as Innovia Monorail 200. Although it faced early technical challenges that led to a four-month suspension, it now transports approximately 30,000 riders each day, albeit below its original ridership expectations.
Bombardier received orders in 2010 for its latest Innovia Monorail 300 system from Riyadh and São Paulo. Riyadh’s line supports the pedestrian-friendly King Abdullah Financial District, a significant economic center in the Middle East. São Paulo’s system is integrated into the city’s public transit network with 17 stations serving residential neighborhoods; operations commenced in August 2014 with ten stations operational.
In November 2014, Bombardier entered into a joint venture with Chinese manufacturer CSR (currently CRRC) Puzhen to jointly develop and manufacture Innovia Monorail and Automated People Mover (APM) vehicles for the Chinese market.
By August 2019, a consortium including Bombardier secured a $2.85 billion contract from Egypt’s National Authority for Tunnels to supply and operate seventy four-car monorail trains across two lines connecting East Cairo with the New Administrative Capital, and Giza with 6th October City.
Driverless operation
Innovia Monorail systems operate without drivers, utilizing advanced train control technologies. Specifically, the Riyadh and São Paulo lines employ the CITYFLO 650 communications-based train control system. The automated operation improves safety and reliability while enabling shorter intervals between trains and reducing maintenance expenses.
Guidebeams
The monorails travel on slender, elevated guidebeams that are precast and post-tensioned offsite prior to installation. These guidebeams have a width of . The Innovia Monorail 300 is capable of negotiating curves with radii as tight as 46 m and gradients up to 6%. Track switches are designed either as beam replacements or multi-position pivot types.
Safety
Innovia Monorails incorporate evacuation walkways running along the entire length of the guidebeam, allowing passengers to safely exit during emergencies and providing convenient access for maintenance personnel.
Capacity
According to Bombardier, the INNOVIA 300 can accommodate up to 40,000 passengers per hour per direction (pphpd), aligning with the highest monorail capacity standards. Operating eight-car trains at headways of 75 seconds (48 trains per hour) with passenger densities of six per square meter can yield capacities up to 49,600 pphpd—comparable to leading rapid transit networks.
Production
Innovia Monorails are manufactured across several global sites, including locations in Kingston, Canada; Wuhu and Liuzhou, China; Hortolândia, Brazil; and Derby, United Kingdom. These manufacturing centers cater to various international markets, demonstrating the brand's extensive global production network.
Operational
- Jacksonville Skyway Monorail, United States
- AirTrain Newark, Newark Liberty International Airport, United States
Discontinued
- Tampa International Airport, United States (1991–2020)
Innovia Monorail 200 systems
- Las Vegas Monorail, United States
Operational
- Line 15 (Silver), São Paulo Metro, Brazil
- Monorail line 1 & 2, Wuhu, China
- MRT Yellow Line and MRT Pink Line, Bangkok Metropolitan Region, Thailand
In progress
- King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) Monorail, Saudi Arabia
- Liuzhou, China, Monorail line 1 & 2
- Cairo Monorail, Egypt
- Santiago Monorail, Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic
- Muang Thong Thani Branch Line, Bangkok Metropolitan Region, Thailand
Awards
The Chicago Athenaeum annually hosts the Good Design Award. In 2014, the Innovia Monorail 300 was honored in the Transportation category.
Accidents and incidents
São Paulo, as the pioneer city operating the Innovia 300 monorail, has encountered several operational disruptions related to both implementation challenges and train design flaws. In 2016, a Bombardier software malfunction caused a train to depart from Oratório station with its doors left open; fortunately, no injuries resulted. Operating on elevated tracks approximately 15 meters high without protective barriers, the system experienced a collision in January 2019 at the not-yet-opened Jardim Planalto station, which rendered both involved trains out of service for an entire year. The metro workers' union attributed this to a control system deficiency where trains that are shut down become invisible to monitoring systems, thereby increasing collision risk. In January 2020, structural defects led to screws detaching from a track-switch near São Lucas station, causing a five-day service interruption.
The most critical event occurred in February 2020 when a tire on train M20 exploded, resulting in a system shutdown exceeding three months. Partial operations recommenced on June 1 with full service restored by June 18. An initial investigation by São Paulo State's Research Institute revealed numerous irregularities in the concrete guideway causing vibrations that accelerated wear on tire run-flat components, ultimately causing failure. This problem affected all 23 trains currently in operation.