These monorail cabins never stop, ensuring passenger safety is a priority. Monitoring is continuous and the technology is discreet; in this new mode of transport.
They're called MONOCAB OWL, but the short name of these monorail cabins has nothing to do with the owl it might refer to in English. Thorsten Försterling, the mastermind behind the idea and responsible for public relations and marketing for the project, emphasises that the OWL comes from Ostwestfalen-Lippe, the region where they have been developed.
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The cabins are built, he says, “With sustainable materials. We use recycled textiles, wood, as well as wooden surfaces. And what's interesting is what you can see here – he says, pointing to one of the sides of the cabin interior, with symbols that light up in red – It's the so-called “shy” technology, which is not simply a screen,” he comments, pressing the ‘volume’ icon, integrated into the cabin wall, adjusting the sound to his liking.
This unassuming or discreet technology is at the service of the passenger. Uptake of this new public transport depends on “everyone feeling safe. If you are travelling alone at night, you try to avoid confrontational situations. That's why, in this concept, we’ve developed the option of travelling alone. So, there will be constant communication with a control centre. The vehicle is always being monitored”.
Tests have been carried out on several kilometres of the Lippe district railway network; the most innovative aspects have been patented; but as the MONOCAB is an unusual vehicle, there are still challenges to overcome. This is not a normal vehicle. It only has two wheels, not four, which is more complex from a regulatory point of view. Technically it works. We have shown that it works. But when it comes to getting it certified, it takes time. We are surprised that we already have requests from all over the world: from Japan, India, Alaska, Brazil... People are asking us if it could also work in their countries. This puts pressure on us which at the same time spurs us on. “We want people to stay in the countryside or return to it,” concludes Thorsten Försterling, the mastermind behind the idea and head of public relations and marketing at MONOCAB.