This is our last look at the Las Vegas monorail system, and the question is whether or not it might work here.
I posed that question to Curtis Miles, the CEO of the private, not-for-profit company that operates the system.
Curtis is very familiar with our Metro system and is, for the most part, a big fan. He also knows the political lay of the land. His comments: “It only works here” and “We lost a lot of money last year.”
Even still, he expects the system to operate in the black within two years. Revenues are up substantially this year thanks to a fare increase.
But, until the technology changes substantially, monorail really only works in Las Vegas, and he cites a number of reasons.
Key to this system being in place is that it was privately funded by those with direct vested interests and doesn’t rely on tax dollars. It would be like the Mayflower Hotel joining together with other hotels along Connecticut Avenue to pay for a transit line connecting them. The hotel operators in Vegas know that any person that they can get to come into their casinos is worth “X” amount of money, although no one would share that information with me. Not too many businesses can say that, and that mentality doesn’t apply at all to businesses who are trying to get their employees into work.
The other thing that’s different in Las Vegas is the weather.
Unlike Washington, the weather in Vegas is generally dry.
It should be noted, or corrected, that there is another commercial monorail project in the U.S.
A one-mile stretch was built through Seattle for the 1962 World’s Fair. It still serves as many passengers in a year as our system carries every three weeks, although it’s currently closed for renovation. It’s primarily a sightseeing operation and offers discounts for school outings.
A proposal for a commuter monorail in the city was recently voted down by residents there.
The constant rain in Seattle
hasn’t seemed to create a major problem but the ice and snow in this region would wreak havoc on monorails using current technology.
Don’t forget that our own Metro system has had major problems withice, and that it’s only now that the railcars are able to withstand more weather abuse. We also have the ability to use track heaters and chemicals to melt the snow and ice. Neither of those would work very well with the rubber tires of a monorail.
Bottom line: It doesn’t sound like monorail is ready for prime time when it comes to commuter operations in the U.S., and that includes the extension to Dulles Airport.
The one thing that I really thought we might be able to take from the Las Vegas system is the concept of creating a monthly “magazine” for casual riders and tourists. This could include all of the relevant information on using Metro as well as activities around town for the month. There could be little feature articles and commentary (nonpolitical) by local celebrities.
It could be paid for by hotel, restaurant and event advertisements and would be a nice change from the current brochures that look like little more than a government document. The downside is that they might also create more trash on the system.
Questions, comments, random musings? Write to [email protected]
