Innovia Monorail (stylized as INNOVIA Monorail) is the name given to fully automated and driverless monorail system manufactured by Bombardier Transportation. Its straddle-beam design is based on the ALWEG monorail, which was first developed in the 1950s and later popularized by Disney at their theme parks.
In 1989, Walt Disney World got a new fleet of Mark IV monorail trains built by Bombardier Transportation. Bombardier later supplied its first turnkey monorail system in 1991 to Tampa International Airport in Florida; followed by a contract for JTA Skyway Monorail system in Jacksonville, Florida in 1994. Shortly after, in 1996, Newark Liberty International Airport opened a Von Roll monorail system to connect all its terminals. Von Roll technology was sold to Adtranz and later acquired by Bombardier. These early systems are now grouped under the name Innovia Monorail 100.
In July 2004, Las Vegas opened its 6-mile long Mark IV Las Vegas Monorail monorail system (technology now known Innovia Monorail 200 system). The system suffered from repeated technical difficulties, including parts falling from a moving vehicle, in the first few months of service. The system was temporarily closed for 4 months and reopened in December 2004. Since then, the monorail carries 30,000 passengers daily, despite this it is still not meeting the original ridership estimates.
In 2010, the cities of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and São Paul, Brazil placed orders from Bombardier for its latest Innovia Monorail 300 system. As of 2015, both systems are still in delivery. The Riyadh system is for the new King Abdullah Financial District, which will be a car-free economic hub in the Middle East. The São Paulo system will be part of the city’s mass transit network and serve 17 stations between the residential districts of Vila Prudente and Cidade Tiradentes. Phase 1a opened in August 2014 and includes two stations.