The Sydney Monorail: Lost Sydney

[@BuildingBeautifully]

Hey! After watching this video, I hope you too can mourn the loss of the most successful piece of infrastructure Sydney has ever built. For those keen to learn more about the monorail, check out this amazing video by KZbinr Issun! kzbin.info/www/bejne/mWXSo418aMxmi7c It’s really well produced and researched, and honestly it makes you wonder why I even bothered to make my own genuine and accurate video about the monorail 🤷‍♂️

[@akswalia6588]

🥀

[@akswalia6588]

Omg the strong HAI vibes in this one haha!

[@AheadMatthewawsome]

I *pray* for the Monorail’s return every night.

[@Jack-kz4nb]

april fools

[@TheOnlyPommyman]

@@ethans-dk4bk Check the date....

[@everythingisscience658]

This is somehow the MOST insane April fools video I have ever seen. Like it's been 5 minutes since April 1st started

[@nicko6710]

I think it was well played .

[@yukko_parra]

thanks for the reminder

[@luciobennetti]

The first few seconds of the video got me thinking, to be honest. Mainly because here in Europe it's still March 31st though. :D

[@geoffgunn9673]

sort of gave a hint when he said it was successful

[@AlphaGeekgirl]

@@geoffgunn9673 … and cheap

[@ADingoTookMyDasco]

As a parent of small children when the Monorail was still running it was a godsend whenever we visited the Aquarium or Maritime Museum. Not only did it save us from the "My legs are tired" complaints but it also kept the kids entertained. We'd end up having to do at least one complete loop before we got off because the kids loved it so much.

[@yungthils787]

I'm sure your kids appreciate those memories very much. I'm from Newcastle, and growing up I LOVED the monorail whenever my parents took us to Sydney. It was amazing to witness as a kid.

[@philip4193]

I remember that not long after the monorail opened, the government of the day were forced to compensate local brothel owners in the Chinatown district. This was for the cost of these business owners having to install curtains, blinds, tinting etc on the first floor windows of their premises due to passengers passing by on the new monorail having a direct view into the "goings on" of their business operations, and then actually having the nerve to complain later about what they saw going on behind those windows...

[@santouchesantouche2873]

no wayyyy that's hysterical

[@robertcartwright4374]

Some people don't know when they've won, do they?

[@DragonPhlegm]

Going to Chinatown in the 1980s and complaining about seeing brothels…. The nerve of people

[@SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

"We did try to get in touch with Harold Holt for comment, but his office told us he still hadn't gotten back from his swim" 💀Well played. I love the fact that a SWIMMING CENTRE in Melbourne would end up being named in honor of him. The real reason it was named as such was because Harold represented the Division of Higgins in parliament, but it's just too funny to think it's because of what happened to him. We've once considered adding a monorail to Pyongyang but considering what happened in Springfield, Brockway, Ogdenville, and North Haverbrook, not to mention we already have enough transit with trolleybuses, trams, and the Metro...I think we're good for now.

[@becsterbrisbane6275]

For someone touted as one of our most beloved dictators, you know an awful lot about a oft-forgotten Aussie PM!!

[@DragonPhlegm]

Wow Sharith, your production budget has gone way up. You managed to get some really impressive CGI effects and monorail props built specifically for this April Fools video to show what Sydney would look like if we ever had a monorail.

[@Rajasic108]

The Sydney monorail was better than the monorails at Brockway, Ogdenville, and North Haverbrook!

[@alimfuzzy]

Mono.

[@DrKiBs]

And by gum it put them on the map!

[@glurgbarble7268]

there ain't no monorail in North Haverbrook and there never was *slams the shutter closed at the North Haverbrook monorail cafe*

[@defjam2026]

Monorail, monorail, monorail

[@TheOnlyPommyman]

@@defjam2026 Is there a chance the track could bend?

[@Michael-yb2uk]

Can't believe it took me 2/3 of the way to realise it was an april fools joke! Delivered so perfectly as to gaslight me. Keep up the great vids man!

[@uzetaab]

Yep. Me too.

[@rizdog5735]

What was so jokey about it? Did the monorail not exist?

[@eymanyouwell]

I remember it so fondly, genuinely. The last few stations that survive, are truly timepieces. Do you plan on making a video about harbourside?

[@flamingfrancis]

There are a number of videos available that show the demolition of that shopping complex....it was an overrated dud.

[@eymanyouwell]

@@flamingfrancis You do realise that videos vary in quality and style? And Building Beautifully's videos are unmatched in both aspects. From an architectual standpoint- you seem like the kind of person who simply views the building based on your own visual perception of it and nothing else. This is not a good mentality to have.

[@mattyceemoite9647]

The monorail was iconic and I loved riding it as a kid

[@PlanesTrainsEverything]

You mentioned a few times the monorail opened in 1970. The Sydney monorail actually opened in July 1988 and was part of the Darling Harbour Bi-centenial redevelopment. I remember using the monorail one night after work and was stunned at the beauty of the route at night. I always thought this night-time journey was a must-see tourist attraction.

[@RiversRun597]

I think it's part of the joke

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

Reminds me of the just as silly Detroit People Mover, now a tourist attraction like the Sydney Monorail was rather than something really useful. Though the thing most people forget is that it was never intended to be a standalone system. The People Mover was intended to be the downtown distributor as part of a bigger city and metro-wide light rail transit system for Detroit in the early 1980s. But funding was scaled back, President Ford promised 600 million dollars, but because local leaders couldn't agree on anything, the Reagan administration took away their commitment. However, the plans for the People Mover moved forward anyway. Detroit wouldn't get a light-rail line until 2017...probably the closest thing they'll get to that old vision. I got to ride it during Spring Break 2019 as I was there for the FRC Championship. Even though it was fun, it's really just an attraction, or a way of people getting from the convention center during events to the casino.

[@ikkylovesbass]

One of my friends worked for the monorail before it closed and here's some highlights: 1) In the recruitment process, they asked why candidates wanted the job. Her reply was "so I get paid money". She got the job. 2) Drivers on the monorail completed a TAFE course. Yes, for a while there you could earn a Cert 2 in Monorail driving (my friend earnt one!). 3) Sometimes she worked on the customer service booth, and occasionally people would come and complain about bits of the monorail falling off and hitting them, and sometimes even handed back the bit of monorail 4) Towards the end, they started cannibalising some of the monorails for parts to repair the remaining ones. 5) The Monorail song from the Simpsons was extremely triggering for her

[@karac833]

I watched and listened... love the timing. An appropriate day for a review of the monorail.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

Monorail lore: The term monorail originated from German engineer Eugen Langen in 1897, who developed the Wuppertal Schwebebahn which was he called it the Einschieniges Hängebahnsystem Eugen Langen (the Eugen Langen One-railed Suspension Tramway). Unlike other monorails, the Wuppertal one is a suspended monorail and as the name suggests, suspended monorails are suspended from a fixed track. Wuppertal is located in a river valley, and because of steep slopes, the original towns that now makes up the city of Wuppertal expanded lengthwise (resulting in the thin shape of Wuppertal today). It wasn't suitable to build a tram nor an underground subway, so as a way to both unify the valley and find a place for transit to solve congestion, they built a suspended monorail that followed the Wupper River. The first monorail prototype was created in Russia in 1820, and since then, various monorail designs have been proposed and implemented. The first daily-operating monorail in North America opened at Disneyland in California in 1959, with Richard Nixon accidentally getting kidnapped by Walt. The world's largest and busiest monorail system is located in Chongqing, China.

[@stephenwarhurst6615]

I can sadly remember being pick pocketed on the Monorail. The guy I think that did it was waiting around right next to the token machine to watch me buy the token to see what pocket where I put my wallet back in. He follow me into the very over crowed carriage and stood right behind me. I got straight off the Monorail walked into KFC to buy lunch and had a WTF moment as I reach into my back pocket to pay for my meal

[@aussiejohn5835]

I can never understand why the back pocket is seen as a safe place to carry a wallet or phone. Asking for trouble is what you are doing.

[@holidaymail]

LOL, waiting for Holt to come back from his swim….Gold!

[@nolesy34]

YES he came up the Parramatta river coated in ferry oil

[@RGC198]

Hi Sharath, thanks for sharing this interesting video. Back in January 2000, my family and I had a short holiday up in Sydney, staying with relatives at the time. During our stay, we were able to ride the monorail, which was going strong at the time. We also went on the light rail line, which back then terminated at Wentworth Park. That was our only chance to actually see and ride the monorail in action, as when we had moved from Sydney to Melbourne in mid1981, the monorail had not even been built. All the very best from Rob in Melbourne Australia.

[@decannerlin5950]

I vaguely remember using the monorail when I was a very young kid, but I don't remember how I felt about it though. Great video!

[@CallanKilderry]

RM Transit with basically the same thumbnail as this with an upload at pretty much the same time

[@Taitset]

..you had me for a few moments there. 😅 Very fun!

[@michaelstrugnell9696]

It's more a Shelbyville idea

[@Griffin_63]

Here in Melbourne we looked on with envious eyes at the wonderful Sydney Monorail system. We’d often cry when we were taunted by Sydneysiders about our lack of a Monorail system. At one stage there were daily cries to dismantle our rail and tramway networks and replace them with monorails.

[@christopherellis2663]

Sydney Envy 😅 Malborn is always never itself.

[@Griffin_63]

@@christopherellis2663 got worse after Sidney got it’s Monorail. We wanted one SO badly we couldn’t sleep nights.

[@johntauren]

It took me about two minutes to realize that Australia is a day ahead of me! Goddammit

[@Milkyway_Squid]

"We have 0 monorails in the world" Wrong, after the closure of the Null City Monorail in the year 2022B, there are now -1 monorails in the world.

[@completingsydney]

I hear that thing was awfully loud. (Semi) Seriously though, my favourite comment about the monorail was written underneath an SMH article on its closure about a decade ago. "Oh no, now what will I do when I'm in the CBD and I have to get to the CBD via the CBD".

[@kazpaz8729]

I love how you're leaning into your natural humour more! I've thoroughly enjoyed your channel and your latest videos have been *Chef's Kiss*

[@pickle_jammies]

and who could forget that iconic scene in the movie Two Hands(1999), where Heath Ledger(rip) uses the monorail(rip) to make a quick escape from his pursuer, such an efficient and convenient form of transportation that was so widely used.

[@Brucetiki1]

Being from Adelaide, I watched this too early 😂

[@antilatte235]

I visited Adelaide last year, the year of our lord 2022, an it was rather refreshing to spend some time in 2012, however, spoiler alert about the Sydney monorail tomorrow....

[@247Coby]

My favourite monorail was the one at World Expo 88 in Brisbane. It was free and I rode on it all day long doing loop after loop all day looking at the same scenery and hearing the same announcements all day.

[@Class_38]

I'm not happy that their planning on demolishing Habourside Monorail station so much of my childhood is going to be gone

[@jimbojones247]

Is there a chance the tracks could bend?

[@ads998]

Thanks for more awesome content Sharith. You had me going with the 1970 reference. I remember when it opened in 1988. I was 13 and we had a big day out to ride it. Useless piece of infrastructure, but much loved 😂

[@petergibson7287]

Easily your funniest home video. Well done.

[@glurgbarble7268]

starting a conspiracy that Harold Holt was disappeared in an attempt to stop him from building the monorail

[@Smitology]

"81% of Sydneysiders loved the monorail. We can all agree that the remaining 38% were just stupid." lol

[@sylfan1]

Rumour has it Sydney band Ratcat penned their hit ‘That Ain’t Bad’ as a tribute to the city’s Monorail...

[@BasicStealthcamping]

this is the best april fools joke ive seen today! loved it

[@jessed0308]

I love your sense of humor

[@charlielloyd1080]

Great work! I can't wait until you can give the same treatment to Sydney's "light" rail system. Once it is replaced by a flexible, demand responsive bus network which takes people where they want to go on shortest possible routes with zero emission vehicles on car free streets.

[@kellyplant_]

Thank god u covered this I was beginning to think the monorail was something I made up in my brain 😭

[@itsmenoodlebox]

unfortunately you did make it up, sydney never had a monorail!!

[@ajs41]

Finally got to Sydney from the UK in 2016, 3 years too late for the monorail. Saw the old stations though.

[@philiprachtman1217]

I visited Sydney many years ago and we had a great tine on the monorail

[@jackthediscoverer]

Monorail opened in1987 actually

[@FogartyAvenue]

Magnificent vid sir.

[@HyperVectra]

My Dad was the architect of Harborside & the Monorail stations. I was one of the first to ride it with Premier Nick Greiner in '88. I never thought the stations would outlast Harbourside! :(

[@rolexcel]

This cannot be an April fools joke. It is beyond dispute that Denistone is the best train station in Sydney.

[@B10Mman]

Bullshit, Wondabyne and Bombo are the best stations

[@zacplumb]

The slow pan across the for lease signs in the ‘bustling 1 Dixon Street Shopping Centre’ 💀I can tell you had a lot of fun with this one

[@felipecariaga9885]

In May I travel to Sydney after 10 years and the only thing I want is to get on the monorail, now I see that they closed it months after having been there 😢😢

[@AlphaGeekgirl]

I was on the very last Monorail trip at 9pm the day it closed. It was scary, because the cars were super crowded, and full of drunk hooligans that thought it would be fun to see if they could rock it side to side, to see if it would come off its rail. At the time that the monorail closed I had been living in the CBD for 30 years, within just 5 minutes walk of at least three stations, and I only ever rode it when overseas visitors came to Sydney. Why? Because it was bloody expensive!!! But yeah, I kind of wish these days (now that I can afford it), that it was still around. I love the light rail along George Street, but honestly now that all the buses have been redirected, it’s really not as easy to get around the CBD especially going east/west. But then again, it is only a short walk to most places. I reckon they should build a monorail from Chinatown to Sydney University along Broadway. That stretch of road is so congested with traffic, whilst at the same time chockablock full of pedestrians. Alternatively Broadway would make a lovely pedestrian walkway.

[@scanorama346]

Came across this video randomly today, thanks for the laugh, top quality April fool :)

[@phil_c_photography]

Yes. the Date, but not here in South Australia as yet. 11.45pm

[@maybud60]

You got me! 😅 I remember protesting the development of the monorail in the 1980s on a march up George Street to Town Hall. I felt very validated when it was finally dismantled 👍😀

[@xr6lad]

Let me guess. Needing to feel part of a crowd and protest about anything type? 👍🤣🤣

[@mborder8428]

Same.

[@highbrand]

Always wondered who rode that thing, as it rumbled overhead.

[@eddielong8663]

I did as an 8 year old tourist back in 1997. I think my 34 year old self would be considerably less thrilled of the concept.

[@jayone8891]

This is great! Your like 'unfinished london' but with more swearing. Great video

[@jvvoid]

I don't know why people bother with April Fool stuff anymore, but, you did a good job. Gandhi would be proud.

[@mortarn]

They removed the monorail? Aw man. I was looking forward to riding it next time I went back to Sydney. I always loved the monorail. I remember when it opened and me and my mates went round five times

[@TopFix]

I remember going to Sydney as a Melbournian for the first time in 2015 and wondered why there were disconnected stations floating in the air. Then I heard what happened and was sad that I was 2 years late. Then I wondered why the city had no trams anywhere...

[@lukadapro7112]

nooooo, why did u have to reminde me. Every time I think about it a sad and nostalgic wave hits me.

[@markgarroway7597]

There is some good banter in this video

[@JakeRoot]

Those proposed station names really roll of the tongue, too bad it never saw the light of day.

[@sylviaelse5086]

I rode the monorail. It was great. Sadly, after that first time, I never managed to ride it again, because it was closed within fifteen years.

[@willynebula6193]

🤣lol I was fun doing a few laps back in the day as a kid.

[@snowyalice]

I did get to ride the monorail just before it closed in 2013. It was a fun time going around in a circle.

[@DeftPol]

😂“Bustling and alive” *shows completely zombified tenantless mall. Love the change of tone on April 1

[@kevincorby435]

Made my morning very good

[@jamesmullan8658]

Where can we get BB shirts???

[@brettyallop6018]

Slightly disappointed that you couldn't have got a snip from the Simpson's Monorail song into this video!

[@Dobuan75]

I think that the most depressing aspect of the Fukushima nuclear disaster was that it so thoroughly irradiated the Sydney monorail with asbestos, thereby forcing its closure.

[@woofowl2408]

I loved it, used to catch it to work from Ultimo to the city when it was raining or I had slept in.

[@Michael_Chater]

so does it still exist?

[@steveplanesnlego9055]

What year did it open 1970 you said (?)

[@MrScottlusted]

The monorail was run as a PPP by Sydney Metro (along with the light rail). It was shutdown due to the demolition of the Entertainment Centre. At that time, the NSW state government decided to 'buy back' the PPP concession for both light rail and monorail. In my view, the extent of the constructed monorail was a huge compromise, and should have linked Central with Circular Quy and Darling Harbour, so that it could used as a commuter mode and not a tourist one. There was far to much opposition by the NIMBYs at the time. Disappointing outcome all round.

[@mborder8428]

Hang on, what's the date today?

[@andrewjgrimm]

Ironically, I watched this after the first video on Sydney’s least visited train stations. The video works well even for those not viewing on the upload date.

[@andrewsgarage796]

I loved the monorail mate , many happy family memories Best Regards Andrew

[@BRETTYZCAR]

Is there a chance the track could bend? Not on your life my Hindu friend!

[@ariana_p99]

Haha good one Sarath! You got me good there😂😂 Happy April Fools!

[@tdb7992]

At first when you said "8 kilometres of track" I was thinking "sh*t, that whole loop was 8km long!? Surely not..." but then realised just how complex and well thought out this April Fool's joke was. Very well done! I remember going on the Monorail when I first visited Sydney in around 2001. It was impressive to a 15-year-old at the time; but as an adult, I wasn't heartbroken when it was finally torn down.

[@rishisahgal4529]

This was gold

[@russellhammond4373]

Love your work.

[@goolooggg9005]

Correction, there is a Kuala Lumpur Monorail system in operation very popular with KL people & visitors Hope this monorail to be extended to few more destinations...

[@Smitology]

correction, nearly everything said in this video was intentionally false, it's an april fools video

[@antilatte235]

Top shelf. Two thumbs up. Most factually accurate video so far.

[@AngusMurray]

I remember going on it right before it closed, I still have a monorail token

[@worldsasuri9430]

The monorail looked amazing!😃

[@sethtan715]

It's still 31 March in my country

[@6braceface]

This was awesome. Nicely done!

[@ZNimar]

great video, only got to ride on the monorail once when i was 4 or 5.

[@hellomynameisbenjaminupton]

I was a little confused watching this on 11th of April... IM like, 'Thats wrong, thats wrong'. Then I asked myself is the Building Beautifully channel simply just one big meme channel? Then I realised what date this video came out.

[@itsbuttercupy]

Damb, took me 2 minutes into the video being extremely confused to realise it's half past midnight

[@ksks4205]

Can't any government build a dancing fountain in darling harbour? Is that that difficult?

[@sushifornico]

why can't they just rebuilt the tracks and do the extension of the project?

[@rolexcel]

Anyone missing the Sydney monorail should check out it’s suspended siblings the Wuppertaler Schwebebahn in Germany and the Chiba Urban Monorail in Japan. The Sydney monorail should be rebuilt in a suspension configuration. That would be a winner!

[@AheadMatthewawsome]

Seriously, I loved the monorail more than I do with trains now! I have quite a lot of fond memories of the monorail, including when I was invited into the cab. With how the compartments were designed made it uncomfortable NOT to talk with anyone! And you made a lot of friends by the time you did the loop! Some random lady who happened to be the Lord Mayor decided it was “the most offensive structure… since the Cahill Expressway.”So the rest of Sydney found out over a year before it closed, I only had 2 weeks as my parents were my only form of news from the world. I literally broke down crying and screaming (because I was 6 of course) begging for them not to close. I still have that email telling us it was fine for the next 2 weeks somewhere in my house. I have some old videos I was able to find from the last day that you can find on my channel. If you ever make a serious video on the Monorail, I’d love to be involved. I did extend my 2 weeks of mourning by 10 years but I think I’ll cope! By the way Harbourside Station was being demolished when this video was being filmed.

[@JAldrich73]

I still have my “Farewell” Sydney Monorail token. I rode it in both June 2012 and June 2013.

[@itechcircle9410]

Me: Wait don’t we have six months left until April?

[@Seriously983]

love the attitude, great work man!!

[@bign1667]

I miss riding in that fucking monorail around darling harbour

[@buivutuduy]

I was lucky enough to ride the monorail right before its closure. A lovely experience

[@shaneeslick]

G'day Sharath, 😂 I was one of the lucky ones to ride the Monorail, when I was at Sydney TAFE sometimes I would take my lunch & just do laps on it as from memory it was only $1, Oh & it was also good when you had to get from Drinking at Darling Harbour or a concert at the Entertainment Centre back to Town Hall for the train home to Western Sydney.

[@CYBER-EV]

Would it have been more widely used now, since the development of Barangaroo?

[@alimfuzzy]

No... it was expensive and slower than walking.