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General

I like my car... Will SkyTran force me to get rid of it?

No! SkyTran does not replace cars. SkyTran is a new alternative to cars and mass transportation that you may prefer in many situations.

Do I have to drive when using SkyTran?

No. Like a taxi, you ride as a passenger. Each SkyTran vehicle is driven by a computer that knows how to get to your destination quickly and safely. By eliminating most of the complications of today's roads, like children running out in front of you, intersections, and other cars or trucks changing lanes and passing, SkyTran makes the job of driving very simple. Thus a (fast, non-distractable) computer can do it very well, leaving you free to relax and do something else.

What is Personal Rapid Transit (PRT)? How can public transportation be "personal"?

Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) is like a taxi that picks you up and drives you to your destination on a freeway. You travel only with people you choose to, in personal-sized vehicles. The electric vehicles are automatically driven at a constant speed on the main guideway. Like on a freeway, you travel non-stop until taking an exit-ramp at your destination. Also like a freeway, instead of intersections PRT has over-passes so you truly never have to stop. One major difference between cars and Personal Rapid Transit is that you typically don't own the vehicles (though that's a possibility) - vehicles are lined up waiting for you at boarding stations, and after you get out, they either line up to wait for another rider, or go park themselves and wait for peak periods when they'll be needed.

Are you promising automobile fans that they won't have to interact with strangers?

Like cars, the vast majority of the time SkyTran will be ridden solo, especially for commuting - how often do two commuters really want to leave from the same place at the same time and go to the same destination? For leisure travel, two-person vehicles should work well for couples, or a family of four with a parent and a child in each vehicle, or two friends. SkyTran is fundamentally a personal transportation system.

How energy efficient is SkyTran?

A combination of small, light-weight vehicles, magnetic levetation, and electric propulsion collaborate to make SkyTran extremely efficient. Simply put, at 60 mph the electricity for SkyTran would cost less than 1 cent per mile (at current electricity costs of 11 cents per kWhr). By comparison, buying gas for a 30-MPG car at $2/gallon costs more than 7 times as much. Although proponents claim that mass transit costs significantly less than cars [1], entrepreneur and transit iconoclast Brad Templeton points out that "Several of the [mass-transit] modes, such as buses, as well as the light rail and subway systems of most towns, consume more energy per passenger-mile than cars do, when averaged out."

How much will SkyTran cost to build?

A conservative estimate is $10 million per mile for one-way track and $15 million per mile for two-way track. This quote does not include either economies of scale or mass production savings. Fundamentally, SkyTran track can be cheaply built because all of the components are very light-weight. Weight is why roads and trains cost so much - roads need to support many vehicles in a short span that may weigh more than 100,000 pounds, such as tranker trucks and semis. In comparison, SkyTran's guideway only needs to support one 1000 pound (loaded) vehicle at a time. Since SkyTran's vehicles are cheap and light, the guideway can be cheap and light as well. See the detailed cost evaluation page.

Does SkyTran benefit the environment?

It does indeed. This is a direct result of the fact that it only uses 1/10th the energy of a typical automobile today. Also, because it uses electricity from the track instead of needing to carry fuel or a battery, SkyTran doesn't create any pollution at all other than pollution created by the power plants it uses. Also, since SkyTran doesn't use batteries, it doesn't have any potentially corrosive or dangerous chemicals onboard. Compared to the chemistry and engineering challange of building a better battery, generating electricity from environmentally friendly sources like wind, hydro, biomass or solar is simple. SkyTran has the potential to greatly reduce air pollution and carbon emissions for transportation, and even make transportation carbon-neutral.

Pollution causes countless problems including disease, crop damage, global warming, shortage of land, etc. One day, we may enjoy electricity that has no environmental side effects. See this page on environmental benefit.

How fast is SkyTran?

The usual proposed speed is 100 MPH in cities, and 150 MPH between cities. However, these speeds are not hard limits. Rather, it is a question of economics for travel, plus the length of exit and on ramps required. At 100 MPH, SkyTran is 10x more efficient than a typical car. Similar to most cars, SkyTran's most efficient speed is about 55 to 60 mph (see efficiency page). However, SkyTran is not limited to any maximum speed - aerospace engineer Doug Malewicki says that with subtle modifications, SkyTran vehicles could carry passengers at 200 or 300 MPH.

The main issue is the cost of the electricity to overcome aerodynamic drag, which increases as the square of the speed. So a 200-MPH SkyTran needs four times the electricity of 100 MPH, and a 300-MPH SkyTran needs nine times as much electricity per mile traveled. Even at 300-MPH, a SkyTran vehicle would use about the same energy as a typical car today traveling at freeway speeds.

Also, the on-ramps and off-ramps merging to and from the main guideway have to be long enough to accommodate the full acceleration from zero to the traveling speed - which means longer merge-track for a higher speed.

Do I have to wait for a SkyTran vehicle arrives?

No. Vehicles will be waiting for you when you get to a station, in the space between the arrival and departure platforms. Extra vehicles for peak periods will be stored in multi-story storage facilities. Why not just use efficient electric cars instead? Electric vehicles have a lot of advantages over gas vehicles in pollution and energy usage. The Skytran system is run with electric vehicles so it shares the advantages that electric cars have over gas powered cars plus:
  • Skytran uses less energy per passenger-mile than elecrtic cars because SkyTran has
    • Lighter vehicles. The Skytran vehicle doesn't need to carry heavy batteries since it gets its power from the guideway which is connected to the same electrical grid your house is connected to.
    • Lower areodynamic drag since Skytran vehicles don't need the volume for batteries or wheels.
    • Lower rolling resistence: MagLev has a lower rolling resistance than tires on pavement.
    • Less stop and start: Skytran vehicles don't have to stop at intersections or for traffic. Vehicles travel at a constant cruising speed from its source to its destination.
    • More efficient regenerative braking. Because of Skytran's in-track linear-motor design, a higher percentage of kinetic energy can be recovered when it does stop.
  • Lower Pollution. There's a pollution cost to generating electricity. Since Skytran uses less electricity, those pollution costs will be lower than electric cars.
  • Skytran is much safer than a car of any sort because it is traveling above the surface on a dedicated guideway under automatic control. There's no possibility of drunk-drivers or inexperienced teenagers interfering with the safety of themselves or others.
  • Skytran is cheaper than electric cars because SkyTran vehicles are lighter, it uses less energy and the guideways are cheaper than roads.
  • Skytran is faster. There will be no congestion and vehicles will be able to travel safely at 100 MPH or faster.
  • Parking is not an issue. Skytran vehicles will remain in their stations waiting for another passenger.
  • Land usage: The width of a Skytran guideway (1 foot with an addtional 1 foot on each side of clearance space for a vehicle ) is far less than the 3 lane freeway that would be required to carry the same number of passengers. Because the guideway is supported by poles above the surface, very little surface area is required for the guideway, Parking lots and gas stations are also not needed.
Electric cars will still come in handy for destinations that are not close to Skytran stations, but as Skytran grids expand into suburbs, the convenience of SkyTran will vastly outweigh a nice long drive in an electric or gasoline car.

Practical

Will there be enough vehicles during rush hour and other high usage times?

Becuase SkyTran stations are cheap to build, in areas where there are bursts of high usage, many more stations can be built, and the number of vehicles stocked between arrival and departure platforms increased. Many additional vehicles will be stored in multi-story storage facilities, and transported (riderlessly) to stations at peak demand times so vehicles never run out. In areas with especially high traffic, SkyTran stations can be built directly inside buildings on various floors. For example, imagine being dropped off directly on the 10th floor of your office building.

Where will vehicles be parked and maintained?

Vehicles not in use are either parked waiting for a passenger at entrance stations, or in storage. One storage and maintenance facility would be set up for approximately every 25 square miles of SkyTran. Every time a vehicle goes into a storage building, a complete diagnostic will be performed by an automated system. The vehicle's interior is designed for high pressure washing and blow drying.

How will someone retrieve an important item they accidentally left on a vehicle?

Like on a subway or bus, a lost item may be left in the hands of good Samaritans. Unlike on a subway or bus, surveillance video and billing records can prove who was in the vehicle in which the item was lost. If you report finding a lost item on a vehicle, the vehicle can be routed to a maintenance facility. This type of routing would also happen if you refuse to ride it because it needs cleaning or repairs.

Will there be people on site at SkyTran stations? What if there is an emergency during which the passenger can't alert an operator or other person?

Most likely there would be no one on site at stations. There would be an emergency button on the vehicle for people having a medical emergency or something of similar urgency. Like in a car, if the person is incapacitated there is little SkyTran can do to detect this. There would be simply too many people to monitor real-time. In the case that a person is not able to push the emergency button before becoming incapacitated, they would not exit the vehicle in reasonable time. This situation is easy to detect and personnel would be alerted to the situation, surveillance cameras can be used to check on the passenger and verify that there is an urgent problem. At this point, an emergency crew would be called.

I can store my things in my car. How can I do the same thing with SkyTran?

SkyTran will not replace cars. However, electronically locked storage lockers could be built at SkyTran stations where you could keep things you don't want to carry around.

How does SkyTran handle bad weather?

SkyTran is designed to withstand the toughest weather and natural hazards. The system can continue running during moderately high winds, rain or snow, intense heat or fog, ice or hail. The system is even immune to leaf litter (a common problem in rail transit). Because the vehicles are suspended from the underside of the guideway (see picture at left), the guideway needs no cleaning or heating in windy or snowy weather. Also, because the guideway is raised, SkyTran can run even when there are high snow drifts and during floods. Skytran would be able to function normally in weather conditions that would force most transportation systems to shut down.

SkyTran is not immune to everything however - it would be unsafe to operate during hurricanes and tornados. However, SkyTran is designed to withstand even the worst natural disasters, so that it can continue safe operation in the aftermath.

At what headway will SkyTran's vehicles travel?

Headway is how close behind other vehicles a vehicle can travel. The ideal headway for any transportation system is zero, which means that vehicles would be right behind one another - like train cars in a train. Zero headway is most efficient because the guideway is used to its full theoretical potential (every part of the guideway is being used). It is also most efficient because vehicles can take advantage of the slipstream of the vehicle in front of it - greatly reducing overall aerodynamic drag.

SkyTran can be designed to travel safely at any headway - even at zero headway. However, SkyTran proposes that 1/2 second headways can be agreed upon as safe by everybody. Not only is 1/2 second headway far above the saftey limit for computer controled braking mechanisms, but it reduces the structural strength neccessary for the guideway (since any given pole or section of guideway will only have to support one vehicle at a time). If communities and engineers agree that it is safe, headways could be decreased to 30 feet (approximately 1/5th of a second headway). Below 30 foot headways, the guideway would have to be redesigned and rebuilt to support multiple vehicles at one time (since poles are normally spaced 30 feet apart).

How many stations will there be per mile?

Because stations are simple and small, there could be two or three exits per mile. If even more exits are needed, low speed "access road" style guideways can connect multiple stations to a single on-ramp to the main guideway.

Aesthetics

Who wants SkyTran tracks running through their neighborhood?

Every town or city considering SkyTran will need to consider this, but fundamentally SkyTran will have far less impact on a neighborhood than any other means of improving your transportation choices. A new freeway (comparable traffic capacity) or elevated train track (less) running by your home would impact the neighborhood far more. No homes or businesses will need to be bulldozed; construction will be weeks or months instead of years. SkyTran vehicles safely above pedestrians and quiet enough to be unnoticeable indoors (see below), with even the boarding platforms above the ground, will have little impact on a neighborhood other than making it a lot more convenient to go everywhere.

The small size of the guideway and vehicles makes their visual pollution similar to that of existing power lines. SkyTran guideways will include cable tunnels for power and communications lines -- fiber-optic Internet and cable TV along the route will be an added bonus of every installation. Most people will probably consider a single one-foot-wide guideway (painted light blue or grey to minimize visual impact) to be less of a visual intrusion than just the phone and power lines it replaces, not to mention the lanes of roadway, parking lots, and all those cars that SkyTran will replace.

How loud is SkyTran?

SkyTran is probably the quietest transportation system ever invented. All the noisiest parts of conventional vehicles are replaced by no-contact magnetic levitation and linear electric motor drive. There is no engine and no tires; hardly any moving parts at all except the car riding its magnetic cushion down the guideway.

The only noise source is air friction -- like the silence of a sailplane ride. The minimal frontal area and aerodynamic streamlining that give SkyTran 200+ MPG efficiency mean even this noise will be minimal. Most of the wind noise of a 30-MPH glider are from its wings; so since SkyTran's lift is magnetic, even a 100 MPH SkyTran car may be quieter. On the street 20 feet below, think of the "whoosh" of a bicycle going by (but without the racheting gears) -- almost unnoticeable.

Won't SkyTran running by your window be a privacy issue?

If your second- or third-story apartment window is right next to a new SkyTran line, you will have to act just a little bit more like people on the first floor do, but not much. Your nosy neighbor in the apartment right across from you, or a car driver who can cruise slowly by, are far more of an issue. Strangers zipping by at 100 MPH on a computer-chosen route have very little chance to violate your privacy. The automobile and telephone probably required far more privacy adjustments than SkyTran will, and SkyTran promises to be just as big of a positive change in our lives.

Will Skytran interfere with trees and power lines?

The town or SkyTran system will need to prune trees near the guideways, just as utility companies prune trees near power lines. A large branch falling directly on a vehicle would be dangerous, just as it would be falling on a car, but because SkyTran vehicles hang below the guideways, a branch falling on the track will usually roll right off it instead of lying there as an obstacle to vehicles coming by later as it would on a highway. Guideways will contain sensors like laser sights to detect loss of alignment if the track is damaged

Economics

Isn't magnetic levetation (MagLev) expensive?

Currently, the large-scale maglev systems that have been built use one of two different types of active levetation: Electromagnetic Suspension (EMS) or Electrodynamic Suspension (EDS). Both of these are quite expensive because of the weight of the trains and because the systems need to be supercooled to extreme temperatures.

SkyTran uses a passive levetation design based on Inductrack from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories. The design requires no electromagnets and no superconducting magnets, making it quite cheap by comparison. According to a feasibility study conducted by Booz-Allen and Hamilton, Inductrack "costs much less than other maglevs and has operation and maintenance expenses significantly lower than conventional rail." Using maglev allows SkyTran to be much more efficient than if it had used tires, and it eliminates all of the maintenance that is required to use wheels and motors.

Design

Will SkyTran be graffiti-proof?

SkyTran would not be graffiti proof but is naturally adverse to vandalism.

Why do SkyTran's vehicles have two seats?

Driving statistics show that most travelers and commuters are alone. In fact, 77% of people on the road drive alone. The average number of people in a car is 1.2 . What this means is that most of the time there is only one person, and the next most common number is two. Very rarely are there three or more people in a vehicle.

Of course, increasing the size of vehicles would be convenient in some cases. However, increasing the number of seats in a vehicle would make riding about 20% more expensive per seat. Putting more seats side by side is even worse: having two rows of two seats each would double the aerodynamic drag of the vehicle and result in an increase in travel cost of between 50% and 120%.

Low operating costs in SkyTran are the most important part of the idea, because having high-efficiency vehicles is where all the environmental benefit and monetary benefit comes from. That said, adding seats to SkyTran vehicles also means the guideway must be stronger, heavier, and thus more expensive. SkyTran is inexpensive in large part because it is light-weight. Increasing the seats in the vehicles is simply not cost effective or environmentally sound.

Why suspend vehicles from the guideway rather than supporting from below like train tracks?

Vehicles suspended from tracks allow the vehicle to move naturally around turns which causes less stress on the vehicle, the guideway, and the passenger. This is similar to how motorcycles and airplanes bank during turns. Another reason is that this design allows a narrower guidway which makes construction cheaper and causes less aerodynamic disturbance (which can lower efficiency). Also, because the guideway can be closed on top, no objects or debris can sit on the track in the way of the vehicle.

How can SkyTran travel without stops at intersections? What happens when someone needs to get off?

SkyTran's guideways never actually intersect. Just like freeway over-passes, SkyTran can easily build guideways at slightly different heights so intersections never happen. Also like a freeway, to exit a SkyTran vehicle, the vehicle turns onto an off-ramp that brings the passanger to an exit station. In this way, main traffic never has to stop.

Special cases

What happens when the power goes out?

SkyTran will have backup energy storage that will seamlessly begin supplying SkyTran with electricity if the power goes out. In the unlikely event that the power is out longer than the backup storage can last, then vehicles will be taken to the nearest exit stationwith an apology to the passengers. In the far less likely event that the backup power fails, SkyTran vehicles would coast along the guideway toward the nearest exit station. In most cases, vehicles would have enough forward momentum to reach the next station.After that, they roll on their landing wheels, propelled by an emergency battery that should always have enough power to reach the next exit. A vehicle that, for whatever reason, cannot make it to an exit station under its own power could be pushed by the vehicle behind it, or by a self-powered tow vehicle.

What about passenger who don't speak English and/or are not sure of their desired destination?

Operators can always be called to help people who have trouble using SkyTran.

What if a woman has baby on Skytran en route to hospital?

Like a car, bus, or train, SkyTran isn't an ideal place to have a baby, but as the fastest means of transport available, it's likely many couples will use it and a few won't make it to the hospital in time. A doctor in the hospital can advise them by video link, and the vehicle can roll right into the emergency room if neccessary.

It's very likely that there will be SkyTran "ambulances" that can be routed where they are needed. Transporting patients to a hospital quickly and smoothly will improve emergency care and save thousands of lives each year.

Will there be a way to contact an operator from a station if something goes wrong or if a person feels unsafe (e.g. because of a stalker, drunk, or drugie)? What if someone blocks the way to a vehicle?

At every station, there will be a way to notify an operator about something being wrong with SkyTran and surveillance cameras will be able to detur criminals. However, SkyTran is not a security service, and there would be nothing SkyTran could do if an assailant was blocking a person from boarding, as the assailant would most likely also be blocking any form of communication to an operator there might be. As you would today, you'd scream for help or dial 911 on your cell phone.

On a related note, if a person successfully boarded a SkyTran vehicle, there would be no way for an assailant to follow that person as they can today by jumping onto the same bus or subway car. SkyTran is also likely to reduce crimes related to stalking because you don't know where someone is going and can't follow their automatically-guided movements on a single-lane track, as you can in a car today.

Emergencies

What if a heavy truck, plane, or helicopter hits the guideway or a station?

Disasters like this would cause far fewer inuries than if they happened on a highway or rail line, because even vehicles approaching that section of track would be alerted by their on-board radar and sensors in the guideway, allowing them to stop as quickly as neccessary; brakes inside the guideway can stop the vehicle in 55 feet in any weather. Vehicles a bit farther back could quickly exit at a station before the break. Vehicles far enough away to turn off would be automatically re-routed around the compromised piece of guideway and continue to their destination - in most cases, without their occupants even knowing there had been a problem.

Riders whose emergency brakes triggered, could usually back up to the nearest station using guideway power if available, or be pulled by a self-powered tow vehicle. If the guideway is damaged so that moving the vehicles would be unsafe, SkyTran and regular emergency crews would respond to bring the passengers down to safety and repair the vehicles and track, similar to what emergency teams and tow trucks do today for someone who's been in a car accident.

Whose responsibility is it to respond to accidents that affect SkyTran?

Depending on the kind of accident, community emergency response crews would work together with SkyTran system crews, like emergency crews work with a utility company in an emergency situation today.

What would SkyTran do in the case of a terrorism threat?

Because SkyTran is distributed, with hundreds of stations and dozens of lines in each direction, it is much harder to disable than conventional mass transit or even a freeway. Because only one or two riders are in each vehicle and don't wait at the stations, an attack could hurt relatively few people - deterring potential attackers from choosing SkyTran as a target. Also, vehicles are secured to the guideways and automatically guided - so they can't be hijacked or used in a dangerous way. See Safety and Security.





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