Top 10 WEIRDEST Railways in the World

[@MichaelGrubeMiGru]

There's a funicular in my town of Fribourg/Switzerland that uses sewage water that flows into the top car as a counter weight for pulling up the bottom car. Then, at the bottom, the sewage water is let out into the canalization and so on. It's pretty unique.

[@h8GW]

By sewer water, I hope you mean storm greywater and not sanitary sewage blackwater.

[@MichaelGrubeMiGru]

@@h8GW Nope. The carriage at the top station really connects to the city’s used water system (sewage), then, with that added weight, drags the lower carriage uphill, then lets the water flow out into the system again. 🙂 It really stinks! Especially in summer… 🤢😄

[@garyb47]

A shitty way of moving a train !!

[@crosseyedbear1305]

In Switzerland, Fribourg is known for its interesting odor.

[@thechocolatemonster3392]

This is pretty amazing actually. Free potential energy, great idea!

[@Happymali10]

Wuppertal isn't the only suspended railway, not even the only one in Germany, but a safety record of 121 years of operation with only falling down once is hard to beat.

[@Ozymandias1]

And that was due to a sloppy mechanic who failed to remove a piece of equipment. Not because of the system itself. Sadly it costed 5 people their lives.

[@aGGeRReS]

I bet there was not a single hit of a person or car that were stuck on tracks. Because you simply can't.

[@Happymali10]

@@aGGeRReS Well it did hit a truck once. Like...the upper part, because it was too high.

[@aGGeRReS]

@@Happymali10 Dammit. Didn't think of that. Hope there won't be such a tall person passing under.

[@christalbot210]

Well, there was that elephant that got frightened and jumped off the train into the water. I believe it was unharmed (I've only read about it and it happened back in the early 1900's).

[@joon3900]

CRT's quirks really represent Chongqing as a city. Within China, its seen as kind of hip and artsy (like Amsterdam I guess). It also has a bunch of other cool transit stuff like a cable car, funicular, and a public elevator to get between different levels of the city.

[@jonseilim4321]

Chongqing's the kind of city where you can't tell if you're on the first or the hundredth floor

[@IIVQ]

Is Amsterdam seen as Hip and Artsy?

[@unreliablenarrator6649]

CQ "4 Hots": Hot weather, hot food, hot tempers & hot ladies.

[@溧水]

omg yes chongqing's metro is amazing line 6 and 10 are buried so deep that you have to go 31 stories underground

[@nikhillrao3799]

I know what city I want to visit then

[@benmeehan21]

‘The Glass cow subway’ as someone from Glasgow got a right good laugh😂

[@Hiro_Trevelyan]

I used to live in Lyon and Line C is known for its steepness. Tbh t's fun to see tourists trip and fall, as well as their shock when they see Croix-Paquet. Nobody realizes how steep the train is until you reach this station, since it's underground before and after that. The main problem is that this line is really not frequent at all. One small train every 10 minutes in peak hour is just not enough when other lines of Lyon get a train every 2 minutes.

[@filiaaut]

Funfact, the line C of Lyon's metro had a similar yearly ridership to Indianapolis' entire public transport network, pre-pandemic in both cases.

[@jeanphilippeardrone5135]

There is actually one train every 5 minutes in peak hour (I used to take this line to go to high school)

[@cedricklyon]

Note that the rack system is only used on the slope (Hôtel de Ville Croix Paquet Croix Rousse) ! On the hilltop, the wheel-rail bearing is classic (Croix-Rousse Hénon Cuire). The overhead line is fed with 750 VDC power. The original part (Croix Paquet - Croix Rousse was first a funicular. Then, the line has been extended to the South be connected with ligne A, and to the North on an old SNCF railway line, rebuilt partially undeground.

[@AG7-MTM]

One question: you complain about Line C's capacity, but for such an oddball line, does it really need more? (I know for a fact all other Lyon lines can use 4 car trains, but they only run 3 (A and formerly B) and 2 (B and D) car trains most of the time

[@jeanphilippeardrone5135]

@@AG7-MTM He is complaining about frequency, not capacity. Line C cannot fit more than 2 car trains on it's platforms and it would be very expensive to extend them due to difficult geography. It is limited in it's capacity because it runs on a single track between Henon and Cuire. Half of the way is double track with an unused one, and it wouldn't be too expensive to have a fully double track setup up to Cuire

[@francoismartini5148]

My favorite is the Budapest M1 line. Very simple contruction, small cars, unique design. The oldest subway in continental Europe.

[@denizbastunali7863]

The Tunnel line on the European side of Istanbul is older than Budapest's M1.

[@nomadMik]

I've ridden that, and I never noticed. If my friend isn't driven out by the political situation in Hungary, I'll visit again some time, and check it out. I do like how the main ring freeway around the city is the M0-given the way the English highway numbering system is supposed to work, I think the M25 around London should've been called the M0.

[@Ricsard]

@@denizbastunali7863 "Although Istanbul’s Tünel is about a decade older, many people consider Budapest’s M1 line to be continental Europe’s oldest metro network."

[@thndrkeepevolving5266]

I've tried it and it has really old trains with... bells??? directly under the street. it was a cool system but new trains would be good

[@wishstevenson2744]

You're like the David Attenborough for transit systems. Good job!

[@effeo9962]

Attenborough has a beautiful voice, though.

[@CitytransportInfoplus]

Another station with steeply graded platforms is Lausanne Gare on this Swiss cities' fully automated rubber tyre metro. At first this was a funicular but it was later rebuilt and extended as a cog wheel railway and more recently was rebuilt and extended again to become a fully fledged metro service. This metro is also unusual because the trains travel faster when going uphill than downhill. The reason is that the line is very steeply graded and special speed control measures prevent a runaway train careering downhill. Also, at stations the trains magnetically clamp to the tracks - again a safety measure. The Sapporo metro uses a centrally located guidance rail which in many ways makes it a straddle type of monorail. Having trains straddling the tracks helps reduce adhesion issues in snowy weather / prevents sliding sideways if the ground is icy! I was hoping to see the Japanese Linimo maglev metro

[@lzh4950]

Bombardier (formerly ADTranz & now Alstom) Innovia people mover system also uses a single centrally located guide rail, with power rails stacked above it (the version in Singapore has 4 of them: probably 1 neutral rail for current & 1 live rail per phase (the system uses 600V 3-phase AC))

[@mikkokorperich4151]

Here as they are titled in Wikipedia: 10. New Shuttle (Saitama Prefecture, Japan) 9. Uetliberg railway line (Zürich, Switzerland) 8. Stoosbahn (Stoos, Switzerland) 7. Chongqing Rail Transit (China) 6. Wuppertal Schwebebahn (Germany) 5. Skitube Alpine Railway (Australia) 4. Sapporo Municipal Subway (Japan) 3. U-Bahn Serfaus (Austria) 2. Glasgow Subway (Scotland) 1. Lyon Metro Line C (France)

[@LieshaCichol]

9:49 as former resident of Sapporo who used to use that exact line, I looked around for a reason why southern end of Nanboku Line is above ground. The particular route was built to transport guests of Sapporo Olympic to Makomanai Skating Arena from the downtown core. The very simple reason was to hasten the construction In order to ensure the construction would complete prior to the start of the Olympic 1971, THE END. (picture building Canada Line on time, in Edmonton climate, if you're Canadian) Also note that it was one of the first transit in Japan to use fully automated gate/ticket check system.

[@dreflox]

Ohhhh!!!! Lyon line C!!! I lived in Lyon when I was a young child and we took that metro line often! I can't not remember Croix Paquet but I never would've guessed it's actually the steepest metro station in the WORLD. My favorite thing about this metro line is at the final stop Hôtel de Ville/Louis Pradel, there is a tiny replica of the metro at the steep angle and I loved looking at it when I got down at the stop.

[@MKTTransportVideos]

Nice one! When you do Glasgow in full, note it's pronounced to rhyme with "show", not "cow" :)

[@user-mq3um5iu2q]

I live in Glasgow and I've never thought our subway too weird. Sure it's uncomfortable to stand up for more than 30 seconds (a nightmare if it's crowded as you're ducking your head in the doorway) but apart from its small size (and never being expanded) it's a pretty typical metro. The narrow platforms are a bit annoying in busy places like Kelvinbridge. At Hillhead, because they retro-fitted a second platform due to high passenger numbers, you climb up the stairs, over the other track's tunnel and back down 3 steps before continuing on up to the concourse. I fit that a bit weird and annoying. Oh! And only one station has accessible platforms for wheelchairs (St Enoch). Edit: I've found out that Govan and Partick are also accessible.

[@nomadMik]

I visited for the first time last month, and your subway was at the top of the list of the things I wanted to see. Sooo cuuuute!! 🙂 The whole thing with traffic cones on statues was what I wasn't expecting.

[@nomadMik]

And FWIW, I grew up in Australia and have always been a transport enthusiast, and I've never heard of the ski tube. I suppose it's down in Victoria or something.

[@mcgheefoulmouth6587]

@@nomadMik it services perisher ski resort in NSW

[@BigDTony]

i've been on the glasgow subway once and I didn't find it that weird though it was one of only 2 metros i've been on ever (the other one is london that is quite bigger and seemed more busy and different)

[@qwertyTRiG]

Having only one wheelchair-accessible platform may seem pointless, but it probably does help people who can manage stairs but find them tiring or painful. At least they get an easy time at one end of their journey.

[@mr51406]

Fun video! I’ve taken Line C in Lyon. Waiting for a train at Croix-Paquet, the inclined station, and, especially, getting into the carriage is slightly… disconcerting… challenging!🤪

[@Bravidunno]

And yet it's slightly better to wait there than at the terminal, if you want to avoid the crowd, those two stations aren't that far from each other.

[@lanieevans70]

I'd love to see a video about Morgantown's PRT, love you content btw!

[@gondolagripes1674]

😎 same lol

[@dasy2k1]

The Opicina Tramway in Trieste It's a conventional tram line for most of it, but due to a steep grade it also runs as a cable hauled funicular for part of the route with special cable hauled pusher sleds that push the tram cars up and down the grade

[@razsegev6415]

In Haifa, Israel there is an underground urban funicular called "Carmelit" that is actually acting like a metro with 6 stations along the way. the line is 1.8~ km long and the height difference between the top and the bottom is 274 m. It's believed to be the shortest metro in the world.

[@ollie2074]

The Hakone-Tozan Railway is pretty unique. It is one of the oldest mountain railways in Asia, runs up a scenic mountain through a forest, and has lots of single track sections as well as 3 switch backs. Yet it still runs like a metro. Just wonderful 🤩

[@jonathanchua1584]

Fond memories of this from my first visit to Japan. The ride in autumn was unbelievably beautiful.

[@abhishekjain2444]

should check out the Konkan Railway, the only part missing is the metro but it's improving quite a lot recently especially with the new(kinda?) bilevel coaches.

[@HamTech87]

Love how it connects to a series of other modes including a cable car, rope way, and ferry. There's a regular train that brings you there although a shinkansen now takes you there too. For visitors, it is a cute area for kids.

[@Moonstone-Redux]

​@@HamTech87The express train that takes you directly from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto (the first station for the Hakone-Tozan railway), the Romancecar, is also quite interesting as well. It is a narrow gauge train just like most others in Japan, but it set records for being the fastest narrow gauge railway in service, while still having to deal with level crossings. This was also part of the inspiration for building the bullet train, a completely grade-separated standard gauge system that could be even faster than the Romancecar.

[@watcherzero5256]

Main thing I would criticize the Hakone-Tozan for though is its much slower than the bus even on those steep windy mountain roads, it only really makes sense if your going to a hotel or live in a village thats in close proximity of the line.

[@Sim0nTrains]

Been on the Glasgow Subway a few times and it a lovely quirky subway line, great video

[@andrescgomezp]

12:42 Yeah I used to live in Lyon and indeed the C line is like a rollercoaster. It is also the only line in the city that kept its seats on the center (like a bus) instead of throughout the length of the train, due to the inclination, it may cause people to fall down 😂

[@timbounds7190]

Other interesting examples are the Shonan suspended Monorail west of Tokyo is fascinating - it even goes through tunnels and across huge heights above the street. I've seen You-tube videos of a strange urban railway near Hiroshima in Japan (possibly called Sky-rail or something) that is somewhere between a suspended monorail and a cable car! It climbs up this amazingly steep hill. Plus of course the Jeddah metro that only operates during Hajj!

[@jacobf.3543]

Reece your video's are the best. I've learned a ton about what good transit actually is and should look like. Anyways I know you've made videos in the past about upgrading transit if your city built the wrong mode but could you make one that gives examples of what it might take to actually do that. For ex: upgrading light rail to light metro or an actual metro. Would that involve upgrading/ replacing rails or bridges? Raising platforms? Signaling/ power supply? Grade separation? Would it be easier to just build a whole new line? I'd love to see a video that gets into those details a little more. Thanks!!

[@stevendurick9441]

Commented this on your original post but I live in Australia and have literally never heard of the SkiTube (except for your original upload)

[@LetterboxFrog]

Been around since 1988. Easiest way to get to Perisher. No need to fit snow chains or pay national Park fees (included in train fare).

[@bar_boko]

I highly recommend checking the Karmelit underground rail system in Haifa, Israel. This is the only underground in Israel, and it has 6 stations only. Haifa is built as an upper-under city (that means it builds half on a mountain and half on beach land). Karmel was built to allow easier integration between the city's two parts. Now, here's the interesting fact - one couch to the under part of the city moves the couch from the opposite site. The system works on gravity. And in a small part of the system, there's an interchange that always replaces the two couches between the rails.

[@hypernewlapse]

so its a funicular system?

[@beyondEV]

@@hypernewlapse rubber wheels and funicular. 30% incline making it the steepest underground metro. The lausanne m2 holds the record for biggest height difference between the lowest and highest station (336m). Used to be part funicular / part metro, now the changed it the all rubber tyre metro. max. incline is 12% so the new system does no longer need complicated added technology (makes it faster).

[@carlos_mitosis]

Lyon trains have very fun designs. I especially love the design of the trams, they look very futuristic.

[@katbryce]

Another example of a train with lots of individual doors is the British Rail Class 423 (Southern Railway Class 4VEP) which used to operate south of London in what is now the South Eastern, Southern and South Western Railways. They had about 8 single doors per carriage.

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

Ah the joy of the good ol' slam door stock. You used to be able to jump off the train whilst it was still pulling in to Waterloo, for instance. Nowadays our risk-averse nanny state abhors such personal freedoms. Which is why you can't jump onto the platform on the new 'Routemaster' buses either. Boo!

[@PavlosPapageorgiou]

Yes! I was wondering if you'd mention the Glasgow subway.

[@NoChance-iw9on]

GlasGO not GlasGOW. Great channel, really love your content.

[@LadyCooper]

My favourite funicular is the Haifa Carmelit - it's delightfully weird. It's totally underground, running up Mt. Carmel with a 200m-ish elevation gain. However, the two trains are on one single track, with a short passing section in the middle. This means the middle stations need to be exactly equidistant, and so they're in weird locations and hidden off behind buildings and on side streets. The mountain gets steeper as it goes up, so the cars are only level at the middle two stations. It's very useful for going between the neighbourhoods at the very top and bottom of the mountain, however, and it's fun and kitschy, and it's connected in with the larger Israeli national transit system (only one fare card needed!).

[@Happymali10]

If you don't mind doing a video on a defunct railway system the M-Bahn in Berlin might be worth a look/video, they built an experimental maglev-train as a replacement for a subway-line severed by the separation of Germany, and it ran for a few years in testing before managing all of 1 year in full operation before the Berlin wall came down and reunification put an end to the oddball.

[@vicmanthome6605]

Hey RMTransit! Love your videos. You should do a video on the SF Cable Cars. Would fit very nicely with your strange and unique railways video! Love your vids!

[@tlhskymiler]

Hi Reese. I really enjoy your videos! I grew up in Hamilton Ontario and have ridden the TTC for longer than I can imagine, well before GO was even thought about! I have also ridden many of the systems that you describe -- Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Shanghai, Beijing, London, Istanbul. I find that the former Soviet block countries and cities such as Warsaw, Budapest, Prague, etc have very interesting systems combining Metro, trams, trolleys and buses. I was in Sofia Bulgaria 3 weeks ago and they have what can be best described as a museum of operating vehicles, ranging from 50 year old rattle trap trams manufactured by various Iron Curtain countries that are still in use as well as modern bendy trams. There is dual gauge trackage as both metre and standard gauges are in use! The older Metro vehicles are Russian built and look exactly like the ones you will find in Moscow! Somehow it all works and unlimited rides for a day are about CDN $2.50. I would love to hear your thoughts about these old Soviet cities -- some how they make motley collections of rolling stock survive and work well! Thank you

[@MattMcIrvin]

It doesn't really count as transit, I suppose... but Tom Scott just made a video about Doppelmayr/Garaventa's Monorack, which is a small monorail that is also a rack railway, used mostly for getting cargo up and down hills at vineyards and building sites. The advantage of it being a monorail is that it makes the track very easy to set up and tear down, possibly on a temporary basis. But they try to sell it as a low-volume transportation system for passengers too, with sideways-mounted exposed seats.

[@kenny1800]

So fun to see my hometown subway, Glasgow, on the list at #2! Really looking forward to seeing a dedicated video on it. I would note that the city's pronounced "Glazgo"... people pronouncing the 'w' (with the '-ow' sound) will always make locals wince when we hear it. Great video tho!

[@dalriada842]

I say Glezga. Glazgo is for posh people.

[@clairehislop5873]

(Glaswegian here) Yeah it was good to see the Glasgow Subway on the list😀

[@gde1989]

when you said australia, I thought you were going to talk about the vintage solar powered train in Byron Bay, but then you talked about a system I didn't even know exited here!

[@squeEks89]

Definitely thought that one would be on the list, fully charged does a pretty in depth video about it too that's worth checking out.

[@rileyeyeyy]

Bruh I didn’t even know this one existed I thought abt the Katoomba one

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

In Denmark we have a rather newly built and just ring-extended Metro under Copenhagen. It was intended to be Driverless from the beginning, so you may sit just behind the front window and look at the tracks while it functions all day and night. It had some faults in the beginning so people didn't always end up where intended, but today it mostly functions fine!! A few places it runs on the ground and out of the tube system. On stations it has a glass wall towards the tracks, which open only in front of the doors on the train!

[@kenjohnson762]

My favourite unique railway is the Listowel and Ballybunion, aka the Lartigue Monorail, now closed and partially preserved. It ran through Co. Kerry in rural Ireland, now part of the Republic of Ireland. It opened in 1888 and closed in 1924. The trains were divided into two halves (two boilers, for instance) and balanced on a raised single rail. The design was intended to be suitable for dry sand desert as there were no rails on the ground which could be covered by sand in a strong wind.

[@dalevalentine1721]

I was going to mention this one - we rode it last month on a visit to Ireland. Wonderful bunch of people running the museum.

[@LarsOfMars.]

Nice to see the inclusion of Glasgow. The city is pronounced "Glaz Go", just fyi, and people in Glasgow never call it the "clockwork orange" 👍

[@AnimeOtaku2]

Was going to say the w is silent.

[@KasabianFan44]

@@AnimeOtaku2 What do you mean the W is silent? You can’t pronounce it with a short [ɔ] at the end, that literally goes against the phonotactic rules of English.

[@graham2954]

@@KasabianFan44 it's correct though, pronounced 'Glaz go' and its inhabitants are weegies.

[@KasabianFan44]

@@graham2954 I didn’t realise when I first watched the video that Reece pronounced it with /-ɡaʊ̯/ at the end, and I thought that the guy I was replying to was trying to say it’s pronounced /-ɡɔ/ (as in “got” but without the final t), which would obviously be wrong. I probably misunderstood him

[@mccolliersmcmc]

Something you can't get across in a video about the Glasgow Subway is the wonderful smell. It hits you as you walk through the ticket barriers and down the stairs to the platforms. Some folk say they hate it, but I have always loved it right from being a child and going for my first ride in 1980. Glaswegian's don't think the subway is weird as a lot of them haven't travelled on other systems, but I think the system is brilliantly unique. I've been a few transport systems in my travels (Paris, Munich, Sofia, Milan, Amsterdam, Prague, Bangkok, Hamburg, Freiburg, Dubai, Lisbon, London and others) It was very interesting to learn about other systems around the world that I haven't been on, but I'll always be biased and love the Glasgow Subway the most.

[@markleon411]

As soon as you mentioned Australia, my mind immediately went to the Zig Zag Railway in Lithgow, NSW.

[@balpao1]

Another weird thiny thing is Ascensore Castello d'Albertis-Montegalletto close to Genoa Piazza Principe Station. A couple of cabins moves along an horizontal tunnel as funicular and a vertical shaft as a lift. They retrofitted an older elevator to do it. Maybe we will see other solutions like this in future because combining vertical and horizontal tracks could be extremely useful in many difficult urban environments with underground already crowded of structures and buildings. Tracks and "stations" could be even at high floors of buildings.

[@hilupianoservice]

I'd recommend the Stuttgart U-bahn as an honorable mention. It's mostly a surface railway with high level platforms, but what makes it more unique is that the steep gradients and tight turns precluded standard light rail or metro equipment. The original trains had two body segments and only 2 bogies linked together under the floor because conventional 2-body 3-bogie vehicles lacked sufficient flexibility in yaw and pitch to negotiate the curvy, hilly tracks. The modern equipment they use now looks more mainstream, but the infrastructure remains more acrobatic than most transit systems worldwide.

[@JBFlytography]

I live in Glasgow, never thought of the Underground as being weird. It’s small, cramped and some station layouts could use and update but it’s well used. They trains now are also automated, I am Looking forward to the new trains though!

[@AlFrazelle]

Whenever I take foreigners on the Glasgow underground, they find it hilarious. They can´t believe how small it is!

[@AlFrazelle]

Oh and they find it crazy how loud they are!

[@epender]

They've had ATO automation for a while but will eventually be driverless with the new trains, along with platform screen doors which will hopefully help a little with the smell and the particle air pollution.

[@MakeItWithCalvin]

The Getty Center trams are a really unique hovercar/funicular setup. I have ridden it numerous times to get from the parking area to the museum as a kid and when I figured out how it actually worked, it blew me away. Also, the BART Oakland shuttle is pretty neat even if it is a bit bespoke for the task at hand.

[@ilyapetoushkoff8362]

My personal favourite one is Ascensore Castello d'Albertis-Montegalletto, Genoa, which is the most insane mixture of an elevator and a railway one can ever come up with.

[@heinzmustermann8416]

Holy Moly I've been to Serfaus so often but never knew that the rail is so weird! And that this little village exactly is mentioned here is something i never expected!

[@ambergris5705]

So, not a railway, but in Geneva (Switzerland again) we recently had an amazing innovation: an electric bus that's between a trolley-bus and a battery powered regular bus. Basically, instead of having a huge battery that lasts the whole day, it has a much smaller capacity, but can be recharged extremely fast at some of the stops. This means you don't have the ugly and constraining overhead lines of trolley-buses, but you're much more efficient and constantly operating than a full battery vehicle. And the bus can take a detour if needed, without being helplessly stranded (doesn't happen with trolleys, but you see what I mean, it's much more flexible). Added bonus, all the electricity is carbon free, because it's hydroelectricity coming directly from the river flowing in the area :) it's called the TOSA if you want to check it out!

[@pandus47z]

we have this in a city in the middle of Russia (Novokuznetsk)

[@ahoj7720]

The Naples metro is, to my knowledge, the only one with a spiral tunnel.

[@ahoj7720]

​@@fredschmitt456 Many other trains lines have spiral tunnels or bridges...

[@alainterieur4837]

An honorary mention would probably be Swiss ski resorts train lines, like you can see in Zermatt for example. Forget about boring gondolas or char lifts, some ski resorts use actual trains instead! Many resorts have funiculars, but cog railways are much less common

[@Piotr3kM]

Just got back from Glasgow: platform screen doors would definitely be a great upgrade, as some of the platforms are worryingly narrow.😅 More importantly, when is the full video coming? 😜

[@NiallWardrop]

Never been a problem in a hundred years, and this in a city which is a world centre for serious drinking.

[@djplong]

I don't know if you could make a while video on it, or if it would end up being a series.. But, living close enough to Boston for long enough to know a lot of it's history, I wonder if there's an appetite for "Lowest Hanging Fruit that Should be Done but Still Hasn't Happened". My example is the proposed North South Rail Link in Boston. A project that would connect a dozen different commuter lines, allow for electrification to turn commuter lines into regional rapid transit and get more cars off the road than I can count. ...but because the MBTA (the local transit authority) didn't think of it, they don't like it and go so far as to lie about things like projected costs to "prove" it's un-doable (even though Philadelphia did the exact same thing decades ago). Closing a 1-mile gap with a tunnel isn't QUITE as easy as it sounds because, well, it's Boston and they're much happier spending $20B on The Big Dig that hasn't had all that much effect on traffic. For the cost of less than the 3 stations in New York's 2nd Avenue Subway, Boston could have 12 new rapid transit lines knitting the entire metro area together.

[@MattMcIrvin]

As a resident of the northern reaches, I have so many dreams of what would be possible if this existed. Right now, if I want to commute to South Station, my best bet is actually to drive to Salem, NH and take the Boston Express coach, even though there's a commuter rail station in my town! Second fastest is probably to go to North Station and just walk the rest of the way. This is insane! The North-South Link would basically be the Elizabeth Line for Boston, or that's how I imagine it at least.

[@zendog7212]

Le Petite Train Jaune. Perpignan to Villefranche. It is narrow gauge. It connects with Iberian gauge and standard gauge and a bus to Andorra. There is one in Switzerland that goes to within sight of Mont Blanc. It changes between 3rd rail and catenary and connects at the border with SNCF.

[@Ynhockey]

Haifa's Carmelit is interesting, in that it's a short funicular railway, but it was originally meant to serve as the city's main rapid transit system, similar to a metro, i.e. it's not one of those novelty systems "just to take people up the hill". It has six stations, at quite a steep incline. Its popularity severely declined in the 80s, 90s and 2000s, but in the 2010s it resurged; so much so that there were talks of 24/7 operation. However, first it had a major fire and then its main cable snapped, so the system was offline for the better part of 3 years, and its popularity dropped once again. Now it works until 00:00, and is closed on weekends like most public transport in Israel.

[@blueskiesflyer]

I was expecting Carmelit to make it to the list.

[@leventelenoir]

Talking home here, Budapest's metro line 1. It is an underground tram line really based on its real function, but it had to be put under the ground because people did not want to ruin the view on the avenue it travels along. So, in the mid-1890's, they decided to carve a tunnel, build the railway, then cover the tunnel. It came out to the surface near Heroes Square, resulting in Hungary's first concrete steel bridge, that is still visible, even though the system has been put completely subsurface during the 1980(not sure on the exact year) renovation, when it has been prolonged until an inner-city ring road. Now the reason why it is interesting is because it was supposed to be a tram, and yet it is underground and it is considered to be a metro. The height of the tunnel is 2.65 meters, resulting in the need of special vehicles to travel in it. First vehicles were manufactured by Siemens-Halske, the current ones were made by Hungarian manufacturer Ganz in the early 1980's. Due to the dimensions, no regular tram can fit for the route. It had influence on other metro lines of Budapest, as well. During the renovation of metro line 2, Budapest citizens had the chance to take part in a poll to decide some aspects of the look of the new trains, and they decided to put the lights in the middle, because it makes it look like the "Kis Földalatti" / "Little Subterranean/Underground". The trains on line 4 received the same look, as they were delivered by the same manufacturer, Alstom. And, during the construction of metro line 2, the station at Deák Ferenc tér, where the two lines met and later line 3 also joined, the station and platforms had to be placed elsewhere to be able to build the underpass system and platform entrances for all the lines. This resulted in building a new section of tunnel, and a section of the original tunnel being left basically empty. A decision was made to put this section to good use, and a museum presenting the Budapest metro was built here, still open.

[@afr-BT]

Great video, but I know a funicular in Asturias (Northem Spain) called Funicular de Bulnes, which was built to provide acces to a remote villager in the "Picos de Europa" mountain range. The funicular, which goes through a mountain, is completely underground and connects two valleys. One of the two cars has a external platform for carrying supplies. In my honest opinion i really think that this particular railway would be an interesting topic for a video. Thanks for your attention, love your videos!

[@kyro38]

What a surprise, that's my picture at 12:44 😄😄😄 Thx for the correct credit 👍

[@Conno422]

I just clicked the old video to watch it and it said privated so I came to find the repost.

[@Atm-nv9lz]

i started watching the old one, went off to do somehting, and when i came back it had been privated 😂

[@Steven-z7p8j]

My favourite is Keihan-Keishin Line in Japan. It's operated as Tram in Otsu city and operated as Subway in Kyoto city (through service) and in order to connect them, it's operated in mountainous area as well. That makes this railway unique and weird I think.

[@NaomiClareNL]

They are long gone but here in the Netherlands we had a lot of steam and electric tramways on the side of the road. Kind of like the interurban in the Midwest of the USA.

[@chrischinnery7515]

Brilliantly entertaining and informative. I would like to have a full video on all those systems. Keep up the good work.

[@RMTransit]

Thanks, I hope to do that eventually!

[@carel_dfx]

The Cartagena-Los nietos is a really weird one, because it has 1m gauge, trains are like train/tram, makes stops at the middle of nowhere, has one rail for both sides and, best of all, it's considered as a intercity rail service but sometimes a commuter Murcia has really weird trains out there

[@nomadMik]

I've not ridden that Leon line, but I was up the track in Lausanne, CH, again, just last week, where the metro has stepped floors to overcome the steepness issue. It's also apparently the smallest city in the world with a metro, and a very pretty city. You really should check it out. 🙂

[@mobiletransportvideo]

8:26 re skitube the terminal stations are at Bullocks Flat and Blue Cow with an intermediate one at Perisher Valley. When it first opened only the line between bullocks flat and Perisher valley was running and buses were running in the tunnel between Perisher and blue cow.

[@stevesbahnkanal8108]

One of the most unique Funiculairs in my opinion is also the Funi in Fribourg (CH), because it runs with sewage. I just made a small video about this more than 100 years old transit line in my channel. The only problem there is: you can smell it ;)

[@jg-7780]

Still waiting for you to talk about the Norristown high speed line, probably the weirdest local transit line in North America

[@mrjsanchez1]

That is my favorite weird line, I remember riding the Old Brill Bullets that did about 80 mph!

[@nomdutilisateur89]

I love the River LINE in southern NJ, a diesel interurban “light rail” using freight tracks. So neat!

[@knarf_on_a_bike]

Wuppertal is so beautiful. Gotta be my fave anywhere.

[@asquenn7071]

по русскому не знаю что делать я не понимаю в какой ты группе я в этом ничего нет

[@m4ilm4n]

Love that you featured the Serfaus subway!

[@johncoyle4211]

VERY interesting, thank you. . . I subscribe, by the way. I rode the SKITUBE many years ago, and it was well patronized. I rode GLASGOW in 2011 and was aware of the 4'gauge. On a related issue, the trams in Wellington New Zealand had 4' gauge but they were replaced by TROLLEY BUSES. . . . . and in turn, the trolleys were replaced by BATTERY powered buses. I rode the trolley buses in 2014, as a farewell to the system. I enjoyed seeing those high capacity MONORAIL lines in China! Which demonstrates that a MONORAIL can. . . . and should. . . be used for serious transit rather than a novelty.

[@LetterboxFrog]

Much of the Ski Tube is actually old Snowy Hydro tunnel too, which makes it even more interesting

[@johncoyle4211]

@@LetterboxFrog That really interesting information, thanks for that! I live near Brisbane Queensland. As you know Sydney and Melbourne have some nice transit. . . . and you have covered it, well.

[@danielcallender8649]

That's not true.

[@danielcallender8649]

John. The trolleybuses were replaced by diesel buses

[@MattMcIrvin]

@@danielcallender8649 Ripping out trolleybus wires makes me grumpy, but the MBTA is doing it too.

[@felcofb4750]

Have you ever listen about Minimetro in Perugia Italy? It's nice, a kind of big people mover, that rotate around itself in the end instead of using a loop... I suggest you to check It. Thanks for your videos.

[@DiegoMagengo]

I think as far as North America transit systems, the Loop in downtown Chicago is incredibly unique. In some ways it reminds me of the Wuppertal in Germany as it’s a structure that could have only been brought up during a very specific time period (late 1800s-early 1900s) and stands today as a relic of a bygone era. There are lots of elevated metro rail systems all over the world but most aren’t running through the heart of downtown like in Chicago

[@RealConstructor]

I really like the laundromat train in Switzerland. Looks like you step into the drum of a washing machine. Such a shame you’re not washed and centrifuged during the ride, arriving tiptop at the terminus.

[@beyondEV]

Think will see more of those in the future. Public transport is supposed to be fully wheelchair compatible in Switzerland. Conventional Funiculaires struggle with that.

[@AG7-MTM]

Have you seen the modernisation of the Serfaus system? Apparently the stations look less like elevators, the train is modern with "supposedly" walkthrough cars, and overall has more windows, which I don't think are needed for an entirely underground rail

[@JuMate248]

Perugias mini metro is very unique. It has 7 Stopps an is like an 1 Car Fenicular systhem

[@charlied.469]

You should look into the Personal Rapid Transit System at West Virginia University, it's been going pretty much non-stop since the 70s

[@twosixfour570]

I went to Glasgow last weekend and I hit my head three times off the top of the train so yes the train is tiny 😂

[@SirSayakaMikiThe3rd]

Angels Flight is such a neat little train. I love using it. Its right outside grand central market, so to any tourists in LA, its worth the visit.

[@johnnyjames2525]

Dude I love your channel but SF cable cars are definitely on this list if not #1!!!

[@svennoren9047]

Japan is also quite fond of suspended monorails, not surprising since they have to deal with very crowded cities. ...and now I wonder how difficult it would be to add another, ordinary, monorail on top of the suspended one to double the capacity...

[@tomokokishi3066]

How about Keihan Keishin line from Shiga Japan. It's a combo of street car, metro, and there's even a 61% mountain section making it the most steepest subway in Japan.

[@Luke_Starkenburg]

Nice video, and such unique railways!

[@pmnphxaz]

The rotating cars was 1st pioneered in the Elevator cars for the Gateway Arch in St Louis.

[@DenisAgar]

If we're including hovercrafts then we definitely need to include the Morgantown PRT, which is essentially an autonomous van on a guideway. You can press a button to tell it which station to go to!!! I went this august, hmu if you want pics and vids!

[@unreliablenarrator6649]

The CRT is monorail for 2 reasons: there are steep grades that benefit from the traction, and to build-out the elevated sections great use of prefabricated concrete spans as used.

[@QPRTokyo]

Thank you, I really enjoyed that. 🇬🇧🇯🇵😃

[@MooRhy]

I like the rack tram in Stuttgart (Zacke) with its seperate bike trailer

[@GreenHornet553]

The Schewbebahn in Dresden is an absolutely fun and weird railway system as it's a suspension railway funicular. Yes, you read that right, a suspension railway funicular. One which entered into service the same year as the Wuppertal supsension railway system did in 1901. Another one that is cool and odd is the Pyongyang Metro. Not just because of the fact that it is the last spot to see old Eastern Bloc metro cars from places like East Germany and Czechoslovakia, or the unique and ornate stations designed similar to that which you would see in places like Moscow and St. Petersburg, but also because it is the deepest metro in the world as they go 360 ft (110m for metric people) down into the ground.

[@johnhood3172]

Hi, check out Lynton and Lynmouth railway in north Devon, England . Small but amazing it uses water to operate it’s a must for your channel. Regards JH

[@neurofiedyamato8763]

#3 should be top IMO. That is just wacky. I love how narrow it is. It feels interesting. And come on! HOVERCRAFT technology rail transit? that's wild.

[@SteveChisnall]

My picks for most unusual rail systems are covered by Alec of Technology Connections: the ATS (Airport Transit System) at O'Hare Airport in Chicago which was one of only 3 ever installations of the VAL 256 trains (others were at Jacksonville Florida which shut theirs down and gave their rolling-stock to O'Hare, and Taipei, Taiwan. VAL stopped supporting the 256 (so named for its 2.56 meter wide trains) and so Bombardier was hired to adapt their APM line to the VAL 256 guideway specifications, and the "Subway" at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas. The latter was actually designed by Walt Disney Productions based on the same tech that the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover at Magic Kingdom is built with.

[@Prodigious1One]

Wow, cool, I didn't know that Glasgow had a metro system. I'll be there soon. I like Seoul's metro system. It's stations are very clean and bright.

[@gappup9752]

My favorite is in Wuppertal... I have a tradition, I go there once per year to take the Schwebebahn, then the regional trolleybus to Essen, and then one of the regional trains back to Wuppertal

[@Skip6235]

The Detroit Metro Airport has a cable people-mover using the same hovercraft technology as the line in Austria. It has 3 stations, and is entirely indoors. As far as I know, it is the world's longest fully-interior rail transit line

[@IIVQ]

Montréal Métro can be seen as such. The entire system is underground, and the cars are not weathertight.

[@soup612]

Been on the Skitube for a school camp, and I must say, it's loud, crowded, and dirty. Unfortunately, it's the only choice you'll have to get to either Blue Cow or Perisher.

[@qwertyTRiG]

Isn't there a rural trolleybus somewhere in Eastern Europe? Actually, tram or metro lines which serve an urban core but also extend outside the city are fascinating.

[@blueskiesflyer]

If I recall correctly theres is a trolleybus system that operates intercity services in Crimea

[@JoeyLovesTrains]

8:05 mbta’s alewife extension was built in 1984 with a TBM

[@josephs2581]

not really unique but shout out to Shonan monorail -- one of the only SAFEGE systems, so suspended monorail with laminated wood track and rubber tires, and the only one that goes underground!

[@DarthLenaPlant]

Ngl, I really was surprised by the Serfaus one, DESPITE having once experienced it for myself (ages ago, I almost forgot about it, but the Ski-tube actually made me remember it, and then you even mentioned it fully)

[@aw34565]

+1 for adding Glasgow's 'Clockwork Orange' train.

[@RegebroRepairs]

U-Bahn Surfaus: An unusually large horizontal hover-elevator. Yeah, I think that takes the cake as far as weird goes.