City planners looking into gondola system

[NobodyElse]

FWIW, this image seems to propose using the Whoosh system. Pods are self-propelled along static cables or tracks, allowing ease of switching off of the mainline to station stops. Hmmm....

 

[NobodyElse]

Nice! What do you think the odds are that this actually happens? I think it would be incredibly cool and really elevate Anaheim as a whole. I don’t think anything in LA or Southern California compares to this. Also just realized that OC Vibe is a play on LA Live.

Man, I wish I could tell you, but your guess is as good as mine.
This section form the original article is quite telling though:

"Last December, Swyft Cities shared a PowerPoint presentation indicating that their gondola system—comprising of a fleet of around 35 “pods”—could be implemented at an estimated cost of roughly $33 to $37 million. This equated to just under $11 million per mile, subject to variation based on final design and alignment considerations.

“This proposal is substantially cheaper than ATN’s BRT proposal,” noted one city planner, making reference to $70 million the Anaheim Transportation Network is planning to invest in a bus rapid transit system and associated mobility hubs to accommodate the expected influx of tourists during the 2028 Summer Olympics.

But by July, their estimate had changed drastically. In another PowerPoint presentation Swyft Cities submitted that same month–of which the City of Anaheim paid them a $20,000 consulting fee to produce–they reported the gondola system would now cost $125.7 million, or $33 million per mile. It is not known why these numbers tripled."

That discrepancy it cost estimates is pretty troubling. It's almost like they did a Spinal Tap inches vs. feet mistake.

 

[mickEblu]

Man, I wish I could tell you, but your guess is as good as mine.
This section form the original article is quite telling though:

"Last December, Swyft Cities shared a PowerPoint presentation indicating that their gondola system—comprising of a fleet of around 35 “pods”—could be implemented at an estimated cost of roughly $33 to $37 million. This equated to just under $11 million per mile, subject to variation based on final design and alignment considerations.

“This proposal is substantially cheaper than ATN’s BRT proposal,” noted one city planner, making reference to $70 million the Anaheim Transportation Network is planning to invest in a bus rapid transit system and associated mobility hubs to accommodate the expected influx of tourists during the 2028 Summer Olympics.

But by July, their estimate had changed drastically. In another PowerPoint presentation Swyft Cities submitted that same month–of which the City of Anaheim paid them a $20,000 consulting fee to produce–they reported the gondola system would now cost $125.7 million, or $33 million per mile. It is not known why these numbers tripled."

That discrepancy it cost estimates is pretty troubling. It's almost like they did a Spinal Tap inches vs. feet mistake.

Right. Or maybe they added more gondolas? 35 doesn’t sound like enough.

 

[Disney Irish]

Nice! What do you think the odds are that this actually happens? I think it would be incredibly cool and really elevate Anaheim as a whole. I don’t think anything in LA or Southern California compares to this. Also just realized that OC Vibe is a play on LA Live.

My guess, and its just a guess, its more likely this happens since Anaheim wants to showcase the City for the Olympics which is when they want this completed by.

 

[Nirya]

That cost discrepancy reads a few ways. Tariffs are now a factor in July in a way they weren't in December, along with increased labor costs (aka, much easier to hire cheap labor prior to the Trump admin crackdowns). They probably also counted on getting federal subsidies in the initial estimate, and now the Fed is unreliable on that front, so it's best to just take them out of the estimate.

Number of gondolas likely increased but it would not lead to a tripling of the cost by itself. Those units are coming prebuilt and just need to be attached to the line. The bigger costs are in the actual construction.

 

[truecoat]

Man, I wish I could tell you, but your guess is as good as mine.
This section form the original article is quite telling though:

"Last December, Swyft Cities shared a PowerPoint presentation indicating that their gondola system—comprising of a fleet of around 35 “pods”—could be implemented at an estimated cost of roughly $33 to $37 million. This equated to just under $11 million per mile, subject to variation based on final design and alignment considerations.

“This proposal is substantially cheaper than ATN’s BRT proposal,” noted one city planner, making reference to $70 million the Anaheim Transportation Network is planning to invest in a bus rapid transit system and associated mobility hubs to accommodate the expected influx of tourists during the 2028 Summer Olympics.

But by July, their estimate had changed drastically. In another PowerPoint presentation Swyft Cities submitted that same month–of which the City of Anaheim paid them a $20,000 consulting fee to produce–they reported the gondola system would now cost $125.7 million, or $33 million per mile. It is not known why these numbers tripled."

That discrepancy it cost estimates is pretty troubling. It's almost like they did a Spinal Tap inches vs. feet mistake.

It would still be worth it.

 

[D.Silentu]

Or maybe they added more gondolas? 35 doesn’t sound like enough.

A quick search suggests that each gondola has a capacity of five, so yes, that's fewer that two-hundred riders at any given time.

 

[waltography]

FWIW, the Skyliner has more than 250 gondolas with a max capacity of 10 per gondola (though they rarely fill them except at the end of the day).

 

[mickEblu]

FWIW, the Skyliner has more than 250 gondolas with a max capacity of 10 (though they rarely fill them except at the end of the day).

Yea 35 gondolas for that loop wouldnt cut it. Why did they even choose 35 as a starting point? Seems way off.

 

[Disney Irish]

Yea 35 gondolas for that loop wouldnt cut it. Why did they even choose 35 as a starting point? Seems way off.

If I'm reading between the lines correctly that would just be the initial number of pods just to get the project off the ground, but would increase later. I can't imagine the pods themselves are very expensive and can easily be ordered "off the shelf" to increase capacity as time goes on.

 

[mickEblu]

If I'm reading between the lines correctly that would just be the initial number of pods just to get the project off the ground, but would increase later. I can't imagine the pods themselves are very expensive and can easily be ordered "off the shelf" to increase capacity as time goes on.

Possibly but if the pods are relatively inexpensive compared to the rest of the project/ construction costs why not just start with an adequate amount?

 

[Disney Irish]

Possibly but if the pods are relatively inexpensive compared to the rest of the project/ construction costs why not just start with an adequate amount?

To sell it to the public? If its the infrastructure that costs the most and the pods can easily be added you start with the hugest expense and then add more later once its already underway.

 

[mickEblu]

To sell it to the public? If its the infrastructure that costs the most and the pods can easily be added you start with the hugest expense and then add more later once its already underway.

Yeah I guess. I’d imagine they ve increased the number of pods from the original estimate since it’s now tripled.

 

[Disney Irish]

Yeah I guess. I’d imagine they ve increased the number of pods from the original estimate since it’s now tripled.

Sure, there was a reference in this email from earlier this year about the number of "cars" being affected by updates to the loading/transportation model, so yeah it could have increased -

In general I could also see it as trying to be launched as a "showcase" project for Anaheim for the Olympics rather than an initial off the ground real transportation option. Think like a "worlds fair" type project that gets updated later to be "real".