Created by BAA, these Ultra PRTs whiz around Heathrow’s business parking lots independent of human intervention and have yet to experience what we call “an accident.” Breakdowns are also extremely rare and the system has a 95% reliability rate.
And lest you think this is some PR stunt, the system has been fully operational since April. The diesel buses (and presumably their human drivers) were retired at that time, and the Ultra PRTs have been transporting people with their four-seat configurations since then. The pods are on-demand as well, so unlike the buses they are not making a constant loop from terminal to parking lot looking for passengers. [NYT]
wsDK_II
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 9:54 AMvery cool
Martin
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 10:18 AMhopefully with this successful implentation we can see the expansion cover more than just business travellers and expand out to other areas and be deployed around the world.
Dave
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 10:26 AMI drove past these a few months ago, i couldn’t believe it. I was like “woah, the future is here!”.
cayal
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 1:09 PMHalf expect them to tranform.
Sanjay
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 1:50 PMThis is not new. This has been there in Singapore’s Changi airport since last 15 years. In Singapore there is even a commuter train line where trains operate without driver and carry tens of thousands of passengers every day.
I'm_a_PC
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 2:39 PMAre they pods or an unmanned train / monorail?
The Docklands Light Rail has been around in London for ages as well, but these are smaller, more personal, on demand units.
mogwai
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 6:27 PMNever trust the media. These are very deceiving photos.
The angle they’ve used makes them look like pods. They’re not pods. If you looked at one from the side you’d think it was just another small train carriage or a smart looking bus.
The best bit about them though is being able to go to the front, look out the window, pull an imaginary train whistle, push some invisible levers and pretend your driving a train.
Other passengers love it when you do that.
James
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 3:40 PMVancouver also has a commuter system that is completely autonomous with the ability to be controlled like a normal train or remotely, but they are indeed trains and not ‘pods’ and run to a schedule rather than on demand.
The coolest bit? The have a seat at the front of the car, where the driver would normaly sit, so you can enjoy a rare view.
olearymo
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 4:25 PMThe western news only reports things that happen in western countries.
Carlos Aravena
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 6:07 PMThese pods don’t use rails, they effectively drive themselves (not accelerate/stop on a rail) there is a big difference.
Keiran
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 3:32 PM…but what does 95% reliability rate rate mean, though? Does it mean that for every 100 meters you have to get out and push it for 5?
thing
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 10:05 PMYeah it’s that or 5% of the time they get confused and head for the heart of London. Probably when someone jumps in and says “Home James”
Angus
Monday, August 8, 2011 at 4:56 PMJohnny Cab!
Greg
Tuesday, August 9, 2011 at 9:45 AMAwesome, but hardly revolutionary. They’ve had these at SFO for years.
Tom
Tuesday, August 9, 2011 at 6:37 PMSingapore has these between all 3 terminals at Changi. They have automated monorail systems similar to these (But on a rail of course) at Sentosa Island. They are also working on a project with Australian Mechatronics Engineers to automate their entire underground rail system.