This book summarizes the work on Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) carried out at the Aerospace Corporation from 1968 to 1976. It is intended as a reference for experts and a text for students of transportation engineering. Emphasis is on describing concepts rather than engineering details. PRT is an automated taxicab system, a public transit system of 3- to 6-passenger vehicles operating automatically on a network exclusive guideways separate from street and pedestrian traffic. The book reports on both theoretical studies about economics, networks, traffic management, vehicle propulsion and control and also on experiments testing concepts of propulsion and control.
Better Public Transit Systems is a complete primer for performance and investment analysis of public transportation. Whether you’re planning a major new public transit project, an extension or expansion of an existing system, or evaluating the needs of your current system, this book provides the tools you need to define your goals and objectives and conceive and analyse design alternatives. This completely revised Second Edition includes new material for students and online discussion questions, whilst remaining an essential reference book.
This is the only current and in print book covering the full field of transit systems and technology. Beginning with a history of transit and its role in urban development, the book proceeds to define relevant terms and concepts, and then present detailed coverage of all urban transit modes and the most efficient system designs for each. Including coverage of such integral subjects as travel time, vehicle propulsion, system integration, fully supported with equations and analytical methods, this book is the primary resource for students of transit as well as those professionals who design and operate these key pieces of urban infrastructure.
What are the best transit cities in the US? The best Bus Rapid Transit lines? The most useless rail transit lines? The missed opportunities? In the US, the 25 largest metropolitan areas and many smaller cities have fixed guideway transit—rail or bus rapid transit. Nearly all of them are talking about expanding. Yet discussions about transit are still remarkably unsophisticated. To build good transit, the discussion needs to focus on what matters—quality of service (not the technology that delivers it), all kinds of transit riders, the role of buildings, streets and sidewalks, and, above all, getting transit in the right places. Christof Spieler has spent over a decade advocating for transit as a writer, community leader, urban planner, transit board member, and enthusiast. He strongly believes that just about anyone—regardless of training or experience—can identify what makes good transit with the right information. In the fun and accessible Trains, Buses, People: An Opinionated Atlas of US Transit, Spieler shows how cities can build successful transit. He profiles the 47 metropolitan areas in the US that have rail transit or BRT, using data, photos, and maps for easy comparison. The best and worst systems are ranked and Spieler offers analysis of how geography, politics, and history complicate transit planning. He shows how the unique circumstances of every city have resulted in very different transit systems. Using appealing visuals, Trains, Buses, People is intended for non-experts—it will help any citizen, professional, or policymaker with a vested interest evaluate a transit proposal and understand what makes transit effective. While the book is built on data, it has a strong point of view. Spieler takes an honest look at what makes good and bad transit and is not afraid to look at what went wrong. He explains broad concepts, but recognizes all of the technical, geographical, and political difficulties of building transit in the real world. In the end,Trains, Buses, People shows that it is possible with the right tools to build good transit.
What Is Personal Rapid Transit Personal rapid transit (PRT), also known as podcars or guided/railed taxis, is a form of public transportation that utilizes small automated vehicles and operates them on a network of specially built guideways. Other names for this type of transportation include personal rapid transit (PRT) and guided/railed taxis. Automated guideway transit (AGT) is a kind of system that also comprises bigger vehicles and extends all the way down to smaller subway systems. PRT falls under the AGT category. When it comes to the paths that it takes, it leans more like personal public transportation systems. How You Will Benefit (I) Insights, and validations about the following topics: Chapter 1: Personal rapid transit Chapter 2: People mover Chapter 3: Automated guideway transit Chapter 4: Passenger rail terminology Chapter 5: Cabinentaxi Chapter 6: Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit Chapter 7: ULTra (rapid transit) Chapter 8: Headway Chapter 9: SEA Underground Chapter 10: Cable Liner Chapter 11: Vought Airtrans Chapter 12: Ford ACT Chapter 13: Alden staRRcar Chapter 14: ROMAG Chapter 15: Computer-controlled Vehicle System Chapter 16: Public transport Chapter 17: Krauss-Maffei Transurban Chapter 18: Dashaveyor Chapter 19: Minitram Chapter 20: List of automated transit networks suppliers Chapter 21: Unbuilt Rosemont personal rapid transit system (II) Answering the public top questions about personal rapid transit. (III) Real world examples for the usage of personal rapid transit in many fields. (IV) 17 appendices to explain, briefly, 266 emerging technologies in each industry to have 360-degree full understanding of personal rapid transit' technologies. Who This Book Is For Professionals, undergraduate and graduate students, enthusiasts, hobbyists, and those who want to go beyond basic knowledge or information for any kind of personal rapid transit.
An insider’s “indispensible” behind-the-scenes history of the transit system of San Francisco and surrounding counties (Houston Chronicle). In the first-ever history book about BART, longtime agency spokesman Michael C. Healy gives an insider’s account of the rapid transit system’s inception, hard-won approval, construction, and operations, warts and all. With a master storyteller’s wit and sharp attention to detail, Healy recreates the politically fraught venture to bring a new kind of public transit to the West Coast. What emerges is a sense of the individuals who made (and make) BART happen. From tales of staying up until 3:00 a.m. with BART pioneers Bill Stokes and Jack Everson to hear the election results for the rapid transit vote to stories of weathering scandals, strikes, and growing pains, this look behind the scenes of an iconic, seemingly monolithic structure reveals people at their most human—and determined to change the status quo. “The Metro. The T. The Tube. The world's most famous subway systems are known by simple monikers, and San Francisco's BART belongs in that class. Michael C. Healy delivers a tour-de-force telling of its roots, hard-fought approval, and challenging construction that will delight fans of American urban history.”—Doug Most, author of The Race Underground: Boston, New York, and the Incredible Rivalry That Built America's First Subway
The purpose of this synthesis was to document the past and current experiences of public transit agencies that have planned, implemented, and operated fare-free transit systems. The report concentrates on public transit agencies that are either direct recipients or sub-recipients of federal transit grants and provide fare-free service to everyone in their service area on every mode they provide. The report will be of interest to transit managers and staffs, small urban and rural areas, university, and resort communities, as well as stakeholders and policy makers at all levels who would be interested in knowing the social benefits and macro impacts of providing affordable mobility through fare-free public transit. A review of the relevant literature was conducted for this effort. Reports provide statistics on changes in levels of ridership associated with fare-free service. White papers or agency reports identified by the topic panel or discovered through interviews with fare-free transit managers were also reviewed. Through topic panel input, Internet searches, listserv communications, and APTA and TRB sources, the first comprehensive listing of public transit agencies that provide fare-free service in the United States was identified. A selected survey of these identified public transit agencies yielded an 82% response rate (32/39). The report offers a look at policy and administrative issues through survey responses. Five case studies, achieved through interviews, represent the three types of communities that were found to be most likely to adopt a fare-free policy: rural and small urban, university dominated, and resort communities.
