During the following months the “trenino rosso” (red shuttle running above ground level) will start carrying passengers from Tronchetto to Piazzale Roma in only three minutes. Connecting the ferry terminal bank with the opposite bank on the Tronchetto island, the new People Mover bridge is the final part of the intervention. White as a seagull’s wings, the new bridge is built with hundreds of tons of iron and was lifted into place on thursday 17 September, according to the project’s schedule.
Last improvements to the bridge, stations, elevators and escalator are now being made. In November the shuttle will be tested on the circuit, which is completely above ground level, 857 metres long and with a maximum height difference of 6 metres and a half. The people mover cable railway will be completely automated with no crew on board. Two trains will be fixed symmetrically at the two ends of a circular cable and will be activate by electrical engines placed in the Tronchetto station. Each train will be composed of four cars with a maximum capacity of 200 people (50 for each carriage) with an hourly capacity of 3 thousand passengers, maximum speed will be 26 km per hour.
People mover will be Venice’s first public means of transport travelling above ground level and over the channels, as a matter of fact the only one of its kind in Italy. Its inauguration is fixed for December 2009 and by next carnival it will already be working. People Mover will be managed by ASM Venezia.