---
title: "Transportation Systems That Were Too Far Ahead of Their Time"
description: "With Hyperloop finally becoming a reality, here's a look at equally ambitious transit systems that tried to revolutionize the world — and why they failed."
date: "2017-09-23"
modified: "2017-09-23"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/transportation-systems-too-far-ahead-their-time"
categories:
  - "Advanced Transport"
tags:
  - "high speed train"
  - "hyperloop"
  - "mass transit"
  - "transit"
---

# Transportation Systems That Were Too Far Ahead of Their Time

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Le_trottoir_roulant_et_le_phare_allemand_Exposition_Universelle_1900.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: \<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moving_walkway#/media/File:Parismovingsidewalk1900.jpg" target="\_blank"\>Wikimedia Commons\</a\>\</em\>*

If there is one thing that [Elon Musk's Hyperloop](<https://futurism.com/?s=hyperloop>) has shown, it's humanity's relentless desire to make transport faster, cheaper and simpler for all. Revolutionizing transit is far from simple, however. From the rise of the automobile to [supersonic jets](<https://futurism.com/meet-the-jets-of-tomorrow-supersonic-jet-to-transform-the-way-we-travel123>) that are trying to cut transatlantic flight times in half, countless modes of transport have fought for domination, leaving systems that were ahead of their time in the dust. It's these ambitious and expensive projects whose inventors dared to dream that inspired modern transit systems of today.

## 1776 — David Bushnell’s Turtle

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/turtle-1200x800.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [Wikimedia Commons](<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turtle_(submersible)#/media/File:Bushnell_Turtle.JPG>)*

During the Revolutionary War, David Bushnell — an American inventor — built the [world's first underwater vessel](<https://connecticuthistory.org/david-bushnell-and-his-revolutionary-submarine/>), meant for use in active combat. Dubbed the "American Turtle," it was meant to be able to [deliver underwater mines](<https://connecticuthistory.org/david-bushnell-and-his-revolutionary-submarine/>) with a passenger on board. The nut-shaped oak structure was able to rise and submerge, and move forward and backward. An interior chamber could be filled with water to control buoyancy, and a vertical propeller on the roof helped it ascend in the water. All attempts of using the Turtle in active combat against the British Royal Navy failed, however, and the designs were [only revealed to the public](<https://connecticuthistory.org/david-bushnell-and-his-revolutionary-submarine/>) later by Thomas Jefferson in a lecture in 1787.

## 1870 — Beach’s Pneumatic Underground Railway

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/beach-station2.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [nycsubway.org](<http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Beach_Pneumatic_Transit>)*

Predating the New York City subway, the Beach Pneumatic Transit was a 95 meter (312 feet) long subway line that [opened in 1870](<http://www.nycsubway.org/wiki/Beach_Pneumatic_Transit>). Rather than propelling cars through tunnels using conventional engines, Beach's concept was based on the idea of a pneumatic system that used air to push the cars along the tunnel. A lot of questions remain about the feasibility of such a system on a larger scale, and no further tunnels beyond the initial demonstration were ever built.

## 1895-1909 — The Hotchkiss Bicycle Railroad

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/25870624-1200x811.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [Sunday Post](<https://www.sundaypost.com/in10/chat/blackpool-pleasure-beach-120-years/>)*

The peculiar bicycle commuter rail called the "Bicycle Railroad" was invented by Arthur Hotchkiss in the late 19th century. After [finding an investor in 1892](<https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2012/08/dodging-cattle-and-bullets-new-jerseys-18th-century-bicycle-railroad/2833/>), the first 1 meter (4 feet) high, 3.2 kilometer (2 mile) metal track was built to connect Smithville to Mt. Holly in New Jersey. With one large wheel in the front and a small one behind, up to two passengers could glide on carts along the track, cutting down on the conventional commuting times while moving at almost 30 km/h (19 mph). Admission [cost ten cents](<https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2012/08/dodging-cattle-and-bullets-new-jerseys-18th-century-bicycle-railroad/2833/>), but marshy weather, lots of mud, and farm animals hindered a smooth ride. It eventually became increasingly unpopular, and the Railway went bankrupt in 1898.

## 1900 — The Trottoir Roulant at the Paris World's Fair

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/mechwalks-1200x800.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [Wikimedia Commons](<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moving_walkway#/media/File:Parismovingsidewalk1900.jpg>)*

[Built for the 1900 World's Fair in Paris](<http://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/rare-photos-of-pariss-mechanical-moving-sidewalks-from-1123349748>), a mechanical sidewalk was installed and opened to the public. Running at up to 10km/h (6mph), the "[wooden serpent](<http://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/rare-photos-of-pariss-mechanical-moving-sidewalks-from-1123349748>)" carried visitors a quarter mile through Paris, up to thirty feet above the ground. With sweeping, panoramic views of the Eiffel Tower, the moving sidewalk made sure visitors did not tire themselves out while enjoying the World's Fair's [impressive number of sights](<http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/worlds-fair-relics-paris>). Balancing posts made sure that nobody toppled over while getting off and on. It was allegedly capable of moving [31,680 passengers per hour](<http://mentalfloss.com/article/31236/walk-way-history-moving-sidewalk>).

## 1929 — Bennie Railplane

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/The_George_Bennie_Railplane_System_of_Transport_poster_1929.png>)
*Image Credit: [Wikimedia Commons](<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bennie_Railplane#/media/File:The_George_Bennie_Railplane_System_of_Transport_poster,_1929.png>)*

The Bennie Raiplane was a monorail-like transport system from 1929 that used [suspended rail cars hanging from a single rail](<http://www.dewi.ca/trains/bennie/index.html>) with wheels underneath for stabilization. Electric motors powered propellers at each end for acceleration. Passengers were supposed to be able to travel at top speeds of 241 km/h (150 mph), [cutting down the time it took](<http://www.rampantscotland.com/know/blknow_bennie.htm>) to travel from Glasgow to Edinburgh to just 20 minutes. A 1930 test track was built as a proof-of-concept, but due to recovery from the Great Depression and with WWII around the corner, inventor George Bennie [never found financial backing](<http://www.rampantscotland.com/know/blknow_bennie.htm>).

## 1956 — The Viberti Golden Dolphin

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/libert-1200x800.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [Histografy](<http://histografy.pl/viberti-golden-dolphin-bus/>)*

This high-speed touring coach was allegedly capable of[ traveling at 201 km/h (125 mph)](<https://petrolicious.com/articles/a-friendly-reminder-that-public-transportation-used-to-be-cool>) thanks to its 400 horsepower gas turbine engine. The Italian super-bus never became a reality, but is part of a [long list of futuristic bus concepts](<http://io9.gizmodo.com/sleek-and-sexy-bus-concepts-from-the-future-that-never-643831984>) of the era that aimed to transform coach travel throughout the Post-War era.

## 1962 — Gyroscopic Monorail

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/grp-1200x800.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [Wikimedia Commons](<https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brennan_monorail_(All_About_Railways,_Hartnell).jpg>)*

The Brennan Gyro-Monorail was [created by Australian inventor Louis Brennan](<http://www.douglas-self.com/MUSEUM/LOCOLOCO/brennan/brennan.htm>) around the turn of the century. Two large, vertical gyroscopes mounted side by side spun in opposite directions to keep the single-rail train level. While the design was tested with 40 soldiers on board (see image above) in 1909, the design had a number of challenges to overcome — each car had to be outfitted with its own pair of gyroscopes and with friction from only a single monorail track, a lot more power was required to pull additional cars. And that's not to mention [the catastrophic failure that would result](<http://www.douglas-self.com/MUSEUM/LOCOLOCO/brennan/brennan.htm>) from a single gyroscope failing.

## 1964 — Skybus

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/skybus-1200x800.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [Wikimedia Commons](<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transit_Expressway_Revenue_Line#/media/File:Westinghouse_Skybus_01.jpg>)*

The Skybus (or its much less catchy name — Transit Expressway Revenue Line) was an attempt to revolutionize rapid transit in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. [Autonomous buses were to ride on top of a concrete track](<https://newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/thedigs/2014/04/02/pittsburghs-ill-fated-skybus/>) above regular road traffic, day in and day out. A 2.85 km (1.77 miles) demonstration track was constructed in 1965 for the Allegheny County fair — [even Walt Disney](<https://newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/thedigs/2014/04/02/pittsburghs-ill-fated-skybus/>) himself came to try it out. The project turned out to be too expensive and ambitious, and [plans for construction in Pittsburgh were scrapped](<https://www.democraticunderground.com/1130241>).

## 1965-1974 — Aérotrain

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/maxresdefault-3-1200x675.jpg>)
*Image Credit: [pb+/YouTube](<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKnr0vYO9bM>)*

The Aérotrain was a French hovertrain developed in the mid-sixties for high-speed travel, designed to overcome the need for complex and expensive magnetic levitation. A [number of test tracks were built](<https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=https://www.vice.com/fr/article/vdwnja/aerotrain-francais-ruines-orleans&prev=search>) around France throughout the 60s and 70s, the longest measuring 20 km (12.43 miles) in Loiret, France. Compressors on board forced air underneath the train, while aircraft engines fastened to the back took care of acceleration. The train moved along an [inverted-T shaped track](<http://mashable.com/2016/01/22/aerotrain/#2sn154gswZqG>). [After failing to attract investors](<http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/aerotrain-d-orleans-test-track>) and with the surging popularity of the TGV (a high-speed train network in France, still in use to this day), the unique project was abandoned in 1977.

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)