Re: [SG][DS][Campaigns] Mass transport and low G planets

From: Robert W. Hofrichter <RobHofrich@peoplepc.com>
>There is an experimental (urban) maglev design that the
designer claims to
>have construction costs pretty close to modern urban rail
systems (one has
>been suggested for trial in the Hampton Roads area, but
nothing's come of it
>yet).	IIRC, this one is a monorail-type set up.

The city governments around here like to waste money, so we'll
probably end up getting it whether we want it or not.  Or more
accurately, we'll get it despite the fact that the referendum
showed that we don't want it.

>exist--after all, the rails are there to help distribute the
very heavy load
>that the car wheels would be transmitting to the ground--but if
your gravity
>is 1/3 g, this weight is pretty low and you may be able to make
do with
>something less (like asphalt or portland cement or even
plastic).

Most plastics
a) are sensitive to ultraviolet light; or
b) are subject to cold-flow deformation under pressure; or
c) present some manufacturing difficulties.

Glass-epoxy laminates should work well but would be more
expensive than iron without any great improvement in
performance.  The cheaper plastics--PVC, polyolefins,
styrenes--wouldn't work.