| Summary: | Recent innovations in transport technology are now providing mobility that
is cheaper, autonomous, electric, and with improved ride quality. While
much of the world’s attention has been on how this can be applied to cars,
there have been rapid adoption of these and other technologies in High Speed
Rail and Metro Rail systems that run between and across cities. This paper
shows how such innovations have now been applied to create the next generation of urban transit system called a Trackless Tram. Trackless Trams are
effectively the same as traditional light rail except they run on rubber tyres
avoiding disruption from construction for Light Rail, but they retain the electric propulsion (with batteries) and have high ride quality due to rail-type bogies, stabilization technologies and precision tracking from the autonomous
optical guidance systems—with infrastructure costs reduced to as low as one
tenth of a Light Rail system. As with Light Rail, a Trackless Tram System
provides a rapid transit option that can harness the fixed route assurance
necessary to unlock new land value appreciation that can be leveraged to
contribute to construction and running costs whilst creating urban regeneration. The paper considers the niche for Trackless Trams in cities along with
its potential for city shaping through the creation of urban re-development
along corridors. The paper suggests that the adoption of Trackless Tram Systems is likely to grow rapidly as a genuine alternative to car and bus systems,
supplementing and extending the niche occupied by Light Rail Transit (LRT).
This appears to be feasible in any medium-sized or larger city, especially in
emerging and developing economies, and case studies are outlined for Perth
and Thimpu to illustrate its potential.
|
|---|