Abstract:
Overhead public transport installation for urban and peri-urban environment using track ropes with overhead stations, each comprising a platform situated below the level of the boarding/disembarkation platforms and consistent with the overhead clearance of the road transport system in terms of the difference in level that corresponds to the sag in the track ropes.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The invention refers to an overhead public transport installation for urban and peri-urban environments comprising vehicles rolling on track ropes between overhead stations above the road transport system. 
       STATE OF THE ART 
       [0002]    The creation of a new means of overhead public transport in the urban fabric above the existing road transport system obviously poses a number of problems of integration, notably of its stations for limiting their bulkiness at places where nothing has been provided for this purpose. Moreover, such a means of transport has never been taken into account in town planning projects. 
         [0003]    Moreover, the access of passengers to the vehicles in a station from the sidewalks on both sides of the urban roads will result in an increase in their crossing and a more considerable traffic interruption, this trouble being more noticeable when the stations are located at crossroads. 
         [0004]    The operation of the overhead transport lines imposes some constraints regarding the situation of the boarding and/or disembarkation platforms which do not very often coincide with the available places on the sidewalks for a direct access to the platforms. 
       OBJECT OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    The object of the invention is to create a station spanning the road transport system and provided with a more or less large platform according to the need, above the overhead clearance of the road transport system and below the level of the boarding and/or disembarkation platforms while taking advantage of the height of the sags in the track ropes which heighten accordingly the level of the station platforms with respect to the overhead clearance to be respected. 
         [0006]    The surface of the platform can be variable according to the type of stations, while being formed either by a simple footbridge between two pillars facing each other on both sides of the road transport system or by a real pedestrian square above a crossroad of several roads, which even enables to design, in a rational way, connecting stations for several transport lines crossing above the platform at different levels. 
         [0007]    Furthermore, in addition to ensuring in a functional way the change of level of the passengers, the development of a public transport station must take into account, with regard to the users, their circulation, their waiting during a peak period, the points where tickets are sold or checked. These. various constraints require to find dedicated areas that can be large in the event of dense traffic, which can be very voluminous, very difficult to find at the level of the road transport system and expensive at the upper level of the boarding/disembarkation of passengers. 
         [0008]    The obligations to ensure the correct operation of such a means of overhead public transport, with the constraints inherent to the integration into an urban fabric which is not flexible and congested, thus result in finding new functional arrangements. 
         [0009]    The platform of a station according to the invention is located under the level of boarding/disembarkation of passengers, and above the overhead clearance of the road transport system because of the sag in the track ropes. The pillars located outside the road transport system support the platform and comprise means of access to the platform from the sidewalks. 
         [0010]    Thus the platform according to the invention: 
         [0011]    is freely open to pedestrians and users, 
         [0012]    allows users only to reach the upper overhead transport level and in an essential way, 
         [0013]    reconstitutes all the areas necessary for the good operation (in particular when the traffic is dense) of the transport system, which is impossible to find at the ground level, 
         [0014]    ensures, on the one hand, regarding pedestrians, a sure means of crossing the roads, and on the other hand, regarding traffic, an improvement thanks to a reduction in the number of pedestrian crossings. 
         [0015]    According to a feature of the invention, there are two pillars on both sides of the station, and the means of access preferably comprise elevators leading to the intermediate level of the footbridge and the upper level of the boarding/disembarkation platforms. 
         [0016]    According to a feature of the invention, each pillar is provided with two elevators in order to ensure the availability of operation. 
         [0017]    According to another feature, the elevators have doors perpendicular to the installation tracks allowing a pedestrian circulation at all the levels, in particular at the level of the road transport system. 
         [0018]    The platform according to the invention can comprise first free zones of use for pedestrians, and second zones only for the users of the public transport, and comprising a number of services. 
         [0019]    The users can reach the upper boarding level from the lower level of the road transport system via a first free access way leading to the platform from places outside the traffic, and the dedicated boarding/disembarkation gates of the public transport from the platform via a second access way for users only. 
         [0020]    Regarding this second access way, the elevators can be provided with automatic doors opening at the upper level facing and against those of the vehicle. The elevator car thus has a triple function of double-entrance security door, vertical transport and platform. By this means, there is no plate above the platform, which reduces considerably the visual impact of the station. 
         [0021]    In the case of a vehicle having two side doors on the opposite sides, the access to the vehicle is given by two elevators, one for boarding, and the other for disembarking. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION TO THE FIGURES 
         [0022]    Other advantages and features of the invention will more clearly arise from the following description of various embodiments of the invention given as examples and represented in the annexed drawings, in which: 
           [0023]      FIG. 1  is a line profile of an installation using ropes and provided with a station according to the invention; 
           [0024]      FIG. 2  is a cross view of a station according to the invention for an installation comprising two vehicle running tracks at the same level; 
           [0025]      FIG. 3  is a top view of the platform level in  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0026]      FIG. 4  is a top view of the footbridge level in  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0027]      FIG. 5  is a top view of the road transport system level in  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0028]      FIG. 6  represents a top view of a town square including a function of two avenues with accesses to the platform according to the invention; 
           [0029]      FIG. 7  represents a top view of two overhead transport lines located above the running tracks and crossing at different levels, with the stopping position of the vehicles, and their contiguous vertical access from the platform; 
           [0030]      FIG. 8  represents a top view of the platform with the locations of the accesses from the sidewalks corresponding to  FIG. 6 , and the accesses for the boarding/disembarkation into/from the idle vehicles of the two overhead lines at different levels, corresponding to  FIG. 7 ; 
           [0031]      FIG. 9  represents a front view of the superposition of the different levels in  FIGS. 6 ,  7  and  8 . 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0032]      FIG. 1  represents a line profile of an installation using track ropes  34  on which a vehicle  25  circulates, in particular a cablecar, along a trajectory  26  above the level of the road transport system  7 . The footbridge  36  or platform is placed under the level of the platforms  24  of a station  38 , which must be higher than the overhead clearance  27  because of the sag in the track ropes. 
         [0033]      FIG. 2  represents a station  2  in which vehicles  3  and  4 , each of them running in a different direction, stop in front of the boarding platforms  5 . The station  2  comprises two pillars  8  located on both sides of the road transport system  7  and supporting a platform  6  located under the levels of the platforms  5  it supports via posts  1 . The accesses to the platform  6  and boarding platforms  5  from the road transport system  7  are represented by two different systems which are elevators  9  or staircases  10  integrated in the pillars  8 . According to the span of the platform  6 , there may be one or more intermediate supports  11  which can also be used as support for possible platforms  12  located between the two running tracks for the vehicles  3  and  4 . 
         [0034]      FIGS. 3 ,  4  and  5  are top views of the various levels of a station  2  according to  FIG. 2 . The doors of the elevators  9 , located in one of the pillars  8 , are advantageously arranged so as to allow a rational access of the users in the longitudinal direction of the road transport system  7 ,  FIG. 5  showing the possibility of accessing to the elevators While encroaching at a minimum upon the sidewalk width. 
         [0035]      FIG. 6  represents an intersection of two avenues  100  forming the road transport system  7  between the buildings  114  of an urban zone, which avenues are bordered by sidewalks  101  on which pedestrians can walk. These pedestrians can reach the platform  6  according to the invention, represented here in dotted lines in the center of the intersection of the two avenues  100 , through accesses  102 , advantageously formed by elevators  9 , escalators  115  or staircases  10 , located at strategic places on the sidewalks  101 . 
         [0036]      FIG. 7  represents an overhead transport line  105  crossing a second overhead transport line  110  located at a higher level. The stopping places of the vehicles  108 ,  109  running on the line  105  are contiguous with their vertical accesses  111 ,  112  from the level of the platform  6 . In the same way, the stopping places of the vehicles  103 ,  104  running on the line  110  are contiguous with their vertical accesses  106 ,  107  from the level of the platform  6 . 
         [0037]      FIG. 8  is a top view of the level of the platform  6  on which is arranged a zone  113  for the users of the urban transport who use the vertical accesses ( 106 ,  107 ,  111 ,  112 ) for the boarding/disembarkation into/from the idle vehicles ( 103 ,  104 ,  108 ,  109 ) of the two lines ( 105 ,  110 ). 
         [0038]      FIG. 9  represents a station  120  in which. vehicles  108 ,  109 , each of them running in a different direction on the overhead track  105 , stop in front of their respective vertical boarding/disembarkation accesses  111 ,  112  and vehicles  103 ,  104 , each of them running in a different direction on the overhead track  110  located at a higher level, stop in front of their respective vertical boarding/disembarkation accesses  106 ,  107 . The station  120  comprises two pillars  8  located on both sides of the road transport system  7  and supporting a footbridge  6  located under the level of the tracks  105 ,  110 . 
         [0039]    The accesses to the platform  6  from the road transport system  7  are represented by two different systems which are elevators  9  or escalators  115  integrated in the pillars  8 . One can reach the vehicles  103 ,  104 ,  108 ,  109  from the platform  6  through the corresponding vertical accesses  1056 ,  107 ,  111 ,  112 . 
         [0040]    According to an alternative embodiment, each vehicle has two side doors on the opposite sides, the boarding/disembarkation into/from two successive vehicles being performed alternatively via two elevators, one for the doors on one side of the vehicle and the other for the doors on the other side.