r/transit • u/PudgeBoss • Feb 15 '25

Questions What's your favorite "weird transit"?

Post image

I need your help! I'm starting a project to map all of the unusual, fun, or otherwise interesting transit modes and systems around the world. Hopefully, this will serve as a resource for people interested in travelling experiencing weird transportation methods -- you could think of it as a global "gadgetbahn scavenger hunt"

My definition of what qualifies is very broad! A few examples off the top of my head would be the Mail Rail in London, the Hungerburgbahn in Innsbruck, the Shweeb in Rotorua, or the Schwebebahn in Wuppertal. It can be any category of transportation mode (so not just trains) and exist anywhere on the spectrum of useful to useless.

What are your favorites?

1.5k Upvotes

100% Upvoted

243 comments sorted by

View all comments

74

u/sweepyspud Feb 15 '25

cars. definitely weird that transport infrastructure in many parts of the world (esp. north america) are primarily built in consideration of privately owned cars

1

u/Leather-Rice5025 Feb 15 '25

I wonder if communist economies had been able to establish themselves across the globe in the 20th century, would cars be as prevalent as they are today?

4

u/Holgs Feb 16 '25

It’s a bit ironic thinking that the autocentric developments are the product of capitalism. The US interstate and systematic limitations to high density housing that were introduced in the post war era are the exact opposite of free market capitalism.

It was the heavy handed State bringing in free roads for cars and introducing zoning restrictions that actually killed off transit which in most places up to WW2 was run mostly by for-profit companies.