Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Jack Slade's Sky Trax Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) Video

Jack Slade is a PRT inventor with a dream... and an attitude:

Some people on the list probably think that I am one of the most out-spoken SOB's they have ever heard of.


He sure is... here's the out-spoken SOB inventor's rant about passengers shooting terrorists with bullets "dipped in pig blood":

Terrorism and Transportation Choice
Thu, 2010/02/04 - 12:00am

Dennis, we went through the whole buildup of aviation mostly in the years 1945 to 2000 without having to restrict firearms on aircraft.

During thise years, can you name me one problem that ever occurred, or one persin that was ever injured? If you can, it certainly did not ever get published in the aircraft accident and incident reports that I was reading constantly during that period.

Lesser of 2 evils....which would you prefer,(1) a trained, armed, passenger or (2) a terrorist who has total freedom to kill everybody on board? If you really want to put the fear of Allah into these terrorists, you should make it be known that ALL your bullets have been dipped in pig blood. All the Military bullets, too.

Jack Slade


Here's Jack Slade's video of his Skytrax PRT model:




Jack Slade got himself onto the list of would -be PRT vendors on the City of San Jose website:

Friday, July 23, 2010

Co-founder of Winona Tea Party Patriots Opposes Pods

Winona Daily News:

Chasco, the co-founder of the Winona Tea Party Patriots, called for the city to reduce its dependence on state and federal aid, with a goal of eventually being self-sufficient. In his opening statement, he talked about how he wanted to "lessen our dependency on aid that requires us to lose our freedoms." He also spoke critically of two other large projects city leaders have promoted - high-speed rail and Personal Rapid Transit, which uses small, pod-like vehicles on guideways to shuttle passengers to their destinations.


Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Alameda Dumps SunCal Project That Promised Personal Rapid Transit

San Francisco Chronicle July 21, 2010 report:

Alameda scrapped its contract with a developer early today to bring thousands of homes and offices to the former Navy base, sending the sprawling project back to the drawing board 14 years after the military left.

The City Council voted 4-0, with one abstention, to sever its four-year relationship with SunCal Cos. of Irvine (Orange County), which had planned to build 4,800 homes, a 60-acre sports complex, offices, parks, schools and a ferry terminal at the former Alameda Naval Air Station, which covers one-third of the island city.


Money quote:

"No matter what kind of Disneyland magic transit they talk about, I don't see how they're going to get all that traffic through two lanes of the (Posey) Tube," Johnson said. "I don't want people to come up to me in the grocery store and say, 'You're the person who ruined Alameda.' "


Suncal pitched its development with PRT to the Alameda City Council on September 10, 2008:

Traffic jams and empty storefronts were two of the main concerns of the City Council and the community at Wednesday's special meeting focused primarily on developer SunCal's latest concept for the former Navy base.

SunCal's 6,200-plus residential unit proposal included self-described "visionary" features: a possible "solar farm" to generate energy and heat; a Bus Rapid Transit system to encourage public transit use and ease traffic; and a Jetson-like Personal Rapid Transit system, which would shuttle people in small computerized electrical vehicles on an elevated roadway to transit hubs.

When pressed by Councilmember Doug DeHaan, the SunCal consultant conceded that the overhead roadway with the computerized vehicles may not be viable, but should it work out, it would be extended throughout the island. Developers in years past had extolled the virtues of a ski-lift-like gondola that would transport people back and forth across the estuary, and another proposal called for a BART system to do the same task underwater. Neither idea made it past the dream stage.


Here's Suncal's presentation at the Alameda City Council September 10, 2008:





Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

This latest setback for the pod people is just one more I'll add to the list of recent pod flops and fiascos:

Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

ULTra PRT Heathrow Debut Postponed a Fourth Time.

No $25 million earmark for PRT pork project in Winona, Minnesota.

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned recently in front of the media.

The Masdar PRT (actually computer-guided golf carts that follow magnets imbedded in the roadway) has been scaled way back, This setback got a mention in the NY Times and confirmed in this Bloomberg article.

The much-hyped PRT project in Daventry ended in fiasco.

The so-called Morgantown PRT (it's a mundane people-mover) was the subject of a student newspaper editorial after a malfunction created a "fireball" and filled a vehicle with smoke. The cost of fixing the Morgantown boondoggle is $93 million.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

MnDOT's Personal Rapid Transit Workshop

Register HERE.

The "tentative draft agenda"

PERSONAL RAPID TRANSIT WORKSHOP
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2010
RADISSON METRODOME
MINNEAPOLIS, MN

TENTATIVE DRAFT AGENDA

Updated Purpose: The purpose of this workshop is to share responses to Mn/DOT’s request for PRT information and to allow participants to understand PRT benefits and barriers to its implementation. Workshop participants will also discuss next steps in exploring the viability of PRT in Minnesota, including principles to guide PRT service implementation, financing options, and organizational and governance approaches.

8:00 a.m. Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:30 a.m. Welcome and Opening Comments
• Tom Sorel, Commissioner, Mn/DOT
• Tim Henkel, Division Director, Mn/DOT
• Derrell Turner, Division Administrator, FHWA
• Jeff Hamiel, Executive Director, Metropolitan Airports Commission
• Met Council Representative

9:15 a.m. Workshop Goals and Context & Summary of RFI Responses
• Mukhtar Thakur, Mn/DOT

10:00 a.m. RFI Responders Comments & Reactions from Attendees

11:00 a.m. Break

11:15 a.m. Policy Issues Panel Discussion
Moderator: Tim Henkel, Mn/DOT

Panelists
• Representative Frank Hornstein, State Legislator
• Barb Thoman, Transit for Livable Communities
• Steve Elkins, Bloomington City Council
• Dennis Sweet, Citizens for PRT

12:30 p.m. Lunch & Keynote Presentation
• Curt Johnson, Citistates Group

1:30 p.m. Facilitated Group Discussions
• Ferrol Robinson, HHH Institute

(Informal breaks)

3:30 p.m. Summary Comments and Next Steps
• Ferrol Robinson
• Mukhtar Thakur

4:00 p.m. Adjourn

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Pod Lobbyist Ed Cain Also Lobbyist for Shady Navy Vets Charity

Read about it at Dump Bachmann.



This in addition to other news about pod flops and fiascos:

ULTra PRT Heathrow Debut Postponed a Fourth Time.

No $25 million earmark for PRT pork project in Winona, Minnesota.

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned recently in front of the media.

The Masdar PRT (actually computer-guided golf carts that follow magnets imbedded in the roadway) has been scaled way back, This setback got a mention in the NY Times and confirmed in this Bloomberg article.

The much-hyped PRT project in Daventry ended in fiasco.

The so-called Morgantown PRT (it's a mundane people-mover) was the subject of a student newspaper editorial after a malfunction created a "fireball" and filled a vehicle with smoke. The cost of fixing the Morgantown boondoggle is $93 million.