# MISC | What is your opinion on elevated railways?



## vijay36 (Oct 5, 2020)

I often see complaints regarding noise/looks, but I'd love to hear your opinions here. What is your opinion on elevated railways, and what is your favorite implementation of it in a city? 

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## da_scotty (Nov 4, 2008)

Mixed bag. 
Removing conflicts is nice, as is the view from the train. It also speeds up compared to street running and is cheaper then underground.
The barrier function and noise combined with visual impact can be really ugly and bad though.

It really depends how they integrated it in a area.


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## ingeniera (Jul 20, 2009)

I love the elevated sections of the Paris metro, I prefer them over the undeground lines.
However, I wouldn't like living right in front of it. 

I used to work right in front of the elevated TGV rail south from Montparnasse, the building was made with windows that didn't open on that side so mechanical ventilation was mandatory all year long. 
It wasn't that bad.


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## Robi_damian (Jun 15, 2008)

They are often slammed for being noisy and such, but is that really the case? Most elevated railways crossing urban areas are exclusively or almost exclusively used by passenger trains. These, in my opinion, are not really noisier than a street. Furthermore, buildings close to the track are often offices anyway, in city centres. Outside city centres, railway lines are rarely „under your window„ in bigger cities, historical legacy aside.

Some elevanted segments are among the best in train travel. London has a few nice sections, but the best in Europe are probably those on Berlin's East-West line:


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## _Night City Dream_ (Jan 3, 2008)

Just love them. For me, they are not an eye-sore but a true decoration to an urban skyline.


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## Clery (Dec 5, 2010)

da_scotty said:


> Mixed bag.
> Removing conflicts is nice, as is the view from the train. It also speeds up compared to street running and is cheaper then underground.
> The barrier function and noise combined with visual impact can be really ugly and bad though.
> 
> It really depends how they integrated it in a area.


In the case of Paris, elevated metro was actually more expensive to build than cut and cover in 1900. They were initially used only to cross either existing rail tracks or the Seine river before techniques were developped to allow doing it underground.

Nowadays, the use of TBM makes it even easier and less disruptive to build deeply underground. A project such as Grand Paris Express would probably not be possible with elevated rail which is a lot more disruptive. The only post-ww2 sections which are elevated in the Paris metro are Seine and Marne rivers crossings of line 1, 8 and 13 because they weren't built deep enough to allow an easy underground crossing. Other non-underground sections on lines 5 and 8 but those are built at grade which is definitely cheaper indeed.


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## RyukyuRhymer (Sep 23, 2007)

I've lived next to three, so far in my life, and used them every day for a time.
they are

Tsukuba Express (Japan) - this is mixed underground and elevated rail. its underground in the first 4 or 5 Tokyo segments, then goes elevated all the way to Tsukuba. I also lived right in front of my station. The noise is noticeable, and since it is the greater Tokyo area, the train starts early and ends late. But I got used to it and actually do miss the sound.

Yui Rail (Japan) - This one is a monorail, and monorails are a lot quieter than the general wheels on track ones. so I never had any problems with the noise from the train itself, but rather the station announcements. but it was okay and comfy to ride on. Also since its in Okinawa, the views are always great as you could see the ocean, Shuri castle, etc. Tourists love the view! 

Yamanote Line (Japan) - This one I didn't enjoy. Since it is in the core of Tokyo.. this line is super busy. Its stations are always packed, noisy and dirty. Lots of pachinko parlors tend to build around there, so all that tobacco smoke around the vacinity. Also this train comes every 2 minutes, so its always noisy.


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## Marsupalami (Jan 29, 2009)

Gautrain by Wayne Holt, on Flickr

Gautrain in Johannesburg is connecting new areas that weren't established when apartheid era railways were built in the 40'2 - through to 80's


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## nanar (Apr 12, 2005)

RER viaduct in east outskirts of Paris (line opened in 1977) : Google Maps


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## Slagathor (Jul 29, 2007)

nanar said:


> RER viaduct in east outskirts of Paris (line opened in 1977) : Google Maps


Paris also has very pretty lines, though. (Google Streetview)

If you want awful, go to Bangkok. (Google Streetview)


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## nanar (Apr 12, 2005)

Yes, but probably you know it's quite impossible (at less very difficult) to dig underground in Bangkok.


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## Svartmetall (Aug 5, 2007)

In future, please put all new threads in the thread finder. Makes my job easier.


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## Slagathor (Jul 29, 2007)

nanar said:


> Yes, but probably you know it's quite impossible (at less very difficult) to dig underground in Bangkok.


Yes, their soil is just as bad as here in the Netherlands. A river delta at the edge of the sea; it's just sand and mud.

But the concrete semi-brutalist approach they've taken to the stations in particular, is a bit much imo. When you're driving underneath a station, it's like you're in an underground tunnel. There's no daylight whatsoever, they expand to within inches from the buildings.


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## The Polwoman (Feb 21, 2016)

I really love the sight of elevated or semi-elevated train tracks:

From the street, they give an absolute urban feeling to the landscape, from the train, you can see a lot of the city.

However, they have their disadvantages. I don't mind too much about whether to live next to them or not but a lot of people do care about the noise and about the risks of certain cargo traffic compared to train tunnels, especially on a corridor like that one through my city (Tilburg, minor elevation): we deal with a lot of hazardous cargo traffic because the Germans are painfully slow in their widening project between the Netherlands and Oberhausen. The speed in Tilburg and Eindhoven is okay, given they are built on some sort of dike which brings less noise than full viaducts, like those in Jakarta (Kota-Manggarai), Sint-Niklaas (BE) or the demolished one in Delft.


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## rheintram (Mar 5, 2008)

I like the classic 19th century brick/stone viaducts. They often contain businesses, shops, restaurants etc. underneath and thus add to the cities. I am less than impressed about their modern equivalents. These days either huge earth banks are being built for cost reasons or concrete monstrosities resembling highway viaducts. Usually the spaces underneath are dead... sometimes fenced off or used as car parking spaces.


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## nanar (Apr 12, 2005)

Once again, good examples would be some parts of Berlin S-Bahn viaduct








Google Maps


Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.




www.google.fr





or Tokyo (three storeys under *concrete* arches) : Google Maps


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## portopia (Jul 28, 2015)

RyukyuRhymer said:


> I never had any problems with the noise from the train itself, but rather the station announcements.


Same. I live near an elevated line with automated rubber tired trains operating on 2 minutes intervals on weekdays. The trains just makes a very faint wind noise, quieter than trucks on the street. But the station announcements and door open/close warnings are very loud and can be heard from the whole block.


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## rheintram (Mar 5, 2008)

Good examples:
*Innsbruck*








Google Maps


Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.




www.google.com





*Vienna (U6)*








Google Maps


Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.




www.google.com





*Vienna (S45)*








Google Maps


Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.




www.google.com





Bad examples:
*Vienna (U2)*








Google Maps


Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.




www.google.com





*Vienna (near main station)*








Google Maps


Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.




www.google.com


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## FabriFlorence (Sep 29, 2004)

I love elevated railways! They are much more funny and interesting than underground sections.


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## RyukyuRhymer (Sep 23, 2007)

nanar said:


> Once again, good examples would be some parts of Berlin S-Bahn viaduct
> 
> 
> 
> ...


thats cool it reminds me a lot of the marunouchi area of Tokyo station (all those shops under the rail i mean)


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## Sallonian (Jun 9, 2017)

Elevated Railways surely are cool, but I'm concerned about their decline over time. In Chicago, transportation authority says that Loop should be converted to subways, in order to modernize, but they don't do it due to costs concerns. My favorite elevated railway is in Dubai, where a modern mixed elevated-subway Metro provides quality service to the residents.


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## bongo-anders (Oct 26, 2008)

I have been living a few 100 meters away from a 3 track elevated railway (and station) so for me it has always been there.
So I'll not say that I'm pro but I'm certainly not against.


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