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Novelty Monorails - Phantasialand
photos by Peter Bosbach
Located at one of those quirky imitation Disneylands, the Phatasialand Jet has operated since 1974. Phantasialand is located in Brühl, Germany (between Cologne and Bonn). The park features a Main Street-Berlin and includes a Western ride with many gags lifted directly from Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean.
Although it is called the Jet, it cruises along at a leisurely speed of 20 km/h. The ten minute ride covers approximately 1 km. Two monorail trains operate on the loop, each with 70 seats. A third train was retired in 2001. Each six-car train is 29.7 meters long. Capacity for the ride is 560 passengers/hour. The guideway is unique to straddle systems, it is cylindrical with track "fins" attached for running surfaces. Ride quality is not all that smooth. The monorail was built by Anton Schwarzkopf Company of Germany, well known amongst roller coaster enthusiasts for their twisted steel track machines. The monorail makes a figure eight through the park, weaving between and through buildings. Part of the track was damaged and rebuilt as a result of a roller coaster fire in 2001.
Peter Bosbach, TMS member from Wuppertal, tells us that in the 1970s there was discussion of extending the monorail to the main rail station, around 5-6 km from the park. Those plans were canceled.
