“It would be nice to watch the city traffic jams from above”: uLite passengers share their impressions

One of the first commercial projects by Unitsky String Technologies Inc., the uLite complex is fulfilling its mission, operating within the Aquarelle Ecopark in Maryina Gorka, Belarus. During the summer season, a ride in the uPod becomes especially enjoyable. It glides 10 meters above the lake, zoo, and pedestrian zones. Together with visitors to Aquarelle, we took a ride on the uLite and collected their impressions.

Not driving, but floating…

To recap, the uLite complex includes two stations, a rail-based electric unmanned vehicle – the uPod and an elevated 1120-meter-long track. Tourists are drawn to this unique mode of transport that fits seamlessly into the eco park’s concept – it’s eco-friendly, silent, and harmonizes beautifully with nature. The elevated track preserves the natural landscape below. Here’s what Aquarelle visitors had to say about their first ride on the uPod.

Anna: “It’s very comfortable and pleasant during the ride. The sensations are unusual, delightful. You could say it doesn’t drive, it floats. The view is wonderful, everything is built to a high technical standard. If this kind of transport were installed in Minsk and the fare were comparable to regular city transit, I’d ride it often! I’d love to see string transport in places where bus stops are far apart – that would be convenient.”

Proud of Our People!

Lyudmila and Galina from Minsk visited the Aquarelle Ecopark with a large tour group. According to them, the main purpose of the trip was to see the uPod. Here are their first impressions: “It moves fast, we really liked it. We’d love to ride something like this in the city. Why not establish a route from Zeleny Lug, for example?

It would only take about eight minutes to get to the city center. String transport could easily connect important areas within the city. And besides the uLite itself, we’re thrilled by the person who invented and brought it to life – Anatoli Unitsky. He’s truly the World Engineer! We’re proud to have such people in our country!”

Convenient, Practical, Innovative 

The couple Olga and Vladimir also came to the park primarily to try out the uLite unmanned system. “It moves smoothly, steadily, confidently,” says Vladimir. “Even though the cabin is suspended quite high above the ground, the ride wasn’t scary. I noticed that it automatically slows down at turns, so you hardly notice any track difficulties. And the view all around is fantastic.”

“The transport is convenient, practical, and innovative,” adds Olga. “It’s my first time at this station, so my dream has come true. I think if they build such routes in Minsk, they’ll work equally well for sightseeing tours over parks and for everyday use above city avenues: during rush hour, you could watch the traffic jams from above and get where you need to go. We personally give string transport a full 100% approval!”

Nadezhda, a mother of many children from Minsk, agrees with the other passengers of the uPod:
“This transport is a very interesting project. It would be amazing to use it in a big city, especially in Minsk. It’s exciting to see everything from above and travel familiar routes. I’d gladly choose it over the tram.”

Dozens of passengers shared similar feedback from their rides. Overall, it’s clear that people enjoy the string rail transport and are happy to use it while exploring the eco park. Visitors to Aquarelle were able to see firsthand that the developer of the transport infrastructure complex had fully delivered on promises to the customer. The lightweight, simple, and eco-friendly uLite fit seamlessly into the park’s layout without disrupting the natural landscape, making it not only an efficient mode of transport but also a tourist attraction drawing visitors from beyond Belarus.