Monorail



The Ba Sing Se Monorail is an enormous train network stretching across the whole of Ba Sing Se, connecting all three rings. It serves as the city's mass transit system. The monorail is pushed from one end of the rail network to the other by a group of elite earthbenders.

History
The monorail was the brainchild of Earth King Yi Ming, an ingenious, but impatient ruler who was tired of having to spend two full days traveling from one end of his city to the other. He tasked his engineers with finding a solution to his traveling woes. The result was the best mass-transit system in the entire world, with no equal in speed, safety or comfort.

Years later, this mode of transport was still used in Ba Sing Se, widely used by commoners to travers across the city. To use the monorail, people needed to acquire a ticket. When Iroh and Zuko had traveled to the capital as refugees, the ticket lady was a bit skeptical of the passports they had presented for Mushy and Lee respectively. In order to get the needed tickets anyway, Iroh flattered the lady with sweet talk, who subsequently stamped the passports without a second thought. On the monorail, they encountered Tahn, Ying, their newly-born daughter, Hope, and Tahn's sister. Other known travelers on that same train ride were the ex-Freedom Fighters Jet, Smellerbee, and Longshot.

When Team Avatar made it to the city after losing Appa to the sandbenders in the Si Wong Desert, they used the monorail as well. On this train, they encountered a strange man sucking on a corn cob.

Schematics


Each train is powered by two earthbenders standing at the end of the vehicle, pushing it along the tracks. Inside, there are benches provided for easy travel comfort, as well as overhanging bars, so travelers could hold on to them in case there was no more room to sit down. The schematics of the monorail show that the windows of the train are covered with paper to hold the wind out. People can slide these windows up in case they would want to take a glance outside.