Citation

Blide B. Transp. Res. Rec. 1994; 1451: 87-94.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1994, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences USA, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The Gothenburg Traffic Authority found that new traffic policy goals identified during recent years are very difficult to achieve by conventional public transport techniques. Consequently new system concepts must be studied. Personal rapid transit (PRT) is one of them. The PRT project in Gothenburg, Sweden, was initiated in 1991. After prestudies an enlarged study, which is described, was started in summer 1992. The object of the study was to investigate whether PRT could take over as the only public transport system and replace the present system (light rail and buses). The work concentrated on four parallel activities: (a) design of a PRT track network covering a major part of the city and the central parts of two adjacent communities, (b) establishment of the travel demand in the area (trip matrices), (c) development of a control system suitable for a large PRT system, and (d) development of a simulation program for the analysis of PRT system functions, with special emphasis on operational strategies, travel standard, capacity, productivity, and resources needed. The approach to the problem and the techniques used and developed in the study are described. The result of the study is that it appears theoretically possible to operate very large PRT systems. The system studied in Gothenburg includes 700 track km (counted in single tracks), 650 stations, and 17,000 vehicles. One question still to be answered is whether it is possible to attain satisfactory reliability for all the components involved.

Language: en

Keywords

Design; Rapid transit; Railroad tracks; Control systems; Computer simulation; Statistical methods; Urban planning; Productivity