The Personal Rapid Transit Boondoggle

Personal Rapid Transit Pod People Invade Mexico

2012-01-31T06:51:00.000-08:00

More locomotion lunacy from the PRT Consulting blog about a Mexican PRT project called Modutram:

A unique operational feature is that the vehicles will keep moving slowly through stations without completely stopping. This operation has proved successful when tested with handicapped passengers.

Here's a video with an annoying soundtrack showing a scale model of the Modutram pod in action. Watch as the white pod noisily jerks while switching toward the end - hilarious!

Ten Years Ago: Taxi 2000 Corporation's Business Plan

2012-01-20T19:06:00.000-08:00

Last month, the Fridley Patch had an article about the Taxi 2000 Corporation. In the article, one of the investors described the would-be pod vendor as "moribund".

Ten years ago this month, January 31, 2002 to be exact, Taxi 2000 had the following "Business Plan" on its website - it's still available on the Wayback Machine:

The Problem We Propose to Solve

A major problem cities face today is congestion. Public opinion surveys confirm that, in the eyes of city dwellers, congestion often is perceived as the most important urban problem. Current modes of public transit date back to the nineteenth century. They offer poor levels of service and consume tens of billions of dollars in operating subsidies. The huge costs to build rail systems generally result in transit systems that connect only a few origins and destinations, and do not induce significant ridership because they are unable to compete with the convenience and flexibility of autos. This further exacerbates the need for greater government subsidies. The bottom line of current urban public transit is huge costs and poor service. This is the reason why public officials are not able to provide relief for the problem. No matter how much public investment flows to conventional public transport, the main problem – congestion – will remain if a new solution is not found.

What Is PRT?

PRT (Personal Rapid Transit) is a system with small driverless vehicles running on demand on a guideway, offering individual trips without stops. PRT has no timetables and no fixed routes. The vehicles wait at stations for passengers, departing when a passenger boards. He or she travels alone or with companions of choice. The vehicle’s computer determines the most rapid route and the vehicle makes no stops until it has reached its destination, resulting in consistently short travel time. These service characteristics are comparable to an automobile. In downtown areas PRT travel times will be much less than travel by automobile or walking, resulting in high PRT ridership.

Why Taxi 2000?

Taxi 2000 (PRT) technology is an elaborate creation utilizing “least-cost strategy”. Installation costs are a fraction of any existing rail technology. Operating costs are well below any current mode of public transit (including buses). As a result, Taxi 2000 PRT can provide much more comprehensive system networks per dollar of capital investment.

axi 2000 PRT offers compact unobtrusive elevated guideways carrying small-scale vehicles with seating for up to three people. The system is fully automated. Modular stations may be stand-alone or due to their small size located in commercial buildings, hotels or parking ramps. Station density in the network is very high, resulting in a much higher level of rider convenience at both ends of the ride. All rides are private, on-demand twenty-four hours per day, direct to destination without transfer.

Large Taxi 2000 PRT systems run at a profit. This allows for system network expansion funded by system profits. Government funds are not necessary for installation or subsidizing operation. Thus, public entities or private interests may own and operate systems.

Taxi 2000 Corporation will receive revenue from two primary streams, system installation management fees and control system software leases. Revenue flowing from secondary sources will include training fees for system personnel, system operation fees, if contracted to operate systems, and ownership of some systems.

The Market

The market for Taxi 2000 PRT is several hundred billion dollars worldwide. On a weekly basis we receive application inquiries from throughout the world (every continent except Antarctica). Taxi 2000 currently enjoys broad-based support from citizen groups throughout the U.S.

Whoa! "broad-based support from citizen groups" REALLY? I don't recall any of that support.

Marketing Strategy

Taxi 2000 PRT will be marketed to both public and private entities. The huge cost advantage in installation and operations, as well as a much higher level of service, will allow us to successfully compete against currently vested urban transit interests. The greatest obstacle to overcome is institutional resistance to change, and heavy lobbying by existing transit systems and the consulting engineering firms supporting them.

We will focus our educational and sales campaigns on communities with the greatest potential for early applications. This effort will be directed toward the general population, citizens groups, legislators, government officials and business interests. The goal is to impart a thorough understanding of Taxi 2000 technology and its cost effectiveness. Our application sales engineers, some of the best in the world, will benchmark our technology against the competition and demonstrate its economic feasibility in a variety of environments. Many of our early deployment opportunities will be in situations where bus and rail systems are unworkable as solutions.

We will also create partnerships with several of the major transportation engineering-consulting firms in the world

Here the "Business Plan" includes the lengthy bios of J. Edward Anderson, A. Scheffer Lang and Raymond A. MacDonald. Then it gets around to... the money:

The Taxi 2000 business plan requires funding of twenty-five million dollars to be raised in successive rounds over a thirty-six month period. The funds will be used for completing specifications, building of the test track facilities, world-class procurement and marketing.

Exit Strategy

The opportunity for investor exit should occur between months 54 and 72. At this juncture, Taxi 2000 should have a strong backlog of booked sales, as well as a substantial number of highly interested potential customers. Initial system installations should be complete and operating, with other systems under construction.

Two potential opportunities for investor exit will be an IPO or a strategic acquisition by a large corporate interest. The strategic acquisition of the investor position would be the more likely scenario but this would be determined by the climate of the public equity markets at that time.

Interesting - a business plan with an "Exit Strategy"?.... anyways, according to Mpls/St. Paul Business Journal:

The firm has raised $2 million in a $24 million fund-raising effort to pay for the testing facility and other corporate needs, according to SEC filings and city documents.

Then there was that nasty lawsuit in 2005 and multiple, failed attempts to grab some taxpayers' money. I wonder how those early investors feel now?

Personal Rapid Transit is So Not Happening in Cincinnati

2012-01-19T09:42:00.000-08:00

The pod people are always saying PRT is happening somewhere - the latest is Amritsar, India. But the pod hypster at FastCoExist.com acknowledged the gazillions of previously hyped PRT projects that fizzled:

That said, it should be noted that projects like this have a way of getting… derailed.

And the Amritsar PRT project will also fade away. I really doubt they will be able to reclaim the cost of construction when there are other, less expensive ways to go from the train station to the city's main attraction:

An auto-rickshaw from the train station to the temple should cost around Rs 20, while a cycle-rickshaw will run about Rs 30.

There is a free bus service from the train station to the golden temple run by Golden Temple trust. It drops you right at the accommodation booking office of the Golden Temple where you can get double bed room for Rs. 100 per day.

One thing is for certain, after the Amritsar pod project fails, the pod people will never admit the failure or why it failed.

Consider the Skyloop PRT which was supposed to happen in Cincinnati. The project is dead as a door nail and its would-be supplier Taxi 2000 was recently described as "moribund" by a Taxi 2000 shareholder.

But the Skyloop website is still up and apparently being used as "Google-bait" to boost the "Google-iciousness" of lawyers, handymen and home renovation and roofing contractors. The "Link Up With Skyloop" page is especially hilarious (I replaced the links with boldface):

While PRT was one of the moving technologies considered for the downtown area in the 2000-1 Central Area Loop Study (CALS) funded by a local car loan group, it was ultimately rejected at that time because of a better cheap auto insurance rate (which is limited to the official new car list) that seemed to fit better with our systems according to www.autoinsurancerates.com. Numerous technical questions regarding PRT could not be answered due to the lack of a working system. However, the Study determined that none of the other technologies studied would generate enough riders to have any hope of being an economic success. Only PRT offered the speed and convenience to get enough people, like Adam Klein eMusic CEO, Rick Kimball Goldman Sachs, and others out of their cars to make any difference in the traffic pattern in the Study area. As the rates on car insurance quotes (another auto insurance quotes resource) continue to increase so does the chances that more people will turn to transit like Taxi Los Angeles. The results of the CALS ridership study performed by Parsons-Brinckerhoff showed that PRT would generate nearly 5 times the weekday ridership of the next best alternative and nearly 12 times the number of new transit trips. A depot is expected to go in near Park West Gallery in the downtown area.

Since 2002 the H.A.H (i.e. hire a handyman) has been monitoring the development of PRT in the USA, England, Sweden, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Working systems are being built now in England and Sweden with the help of the Gantry Crane, and more building may occur soon in the UAE.

Recently, an ancient homemade Skyloop PRT model showed up at the Crystal Court in Minneapolis.

The streetcar line that the Skyloop pod people opposed is slowly making progress. It's too bad the pod people insisted everyone waste all that time and money on the dumb pods. You can read the 2001 OKI Central Loop study that settled the the pods vs rail transit debate in Cincinnati.

The silly Skyloop model (click on it to make it bigger):

Bowling Green Daily News - 6/29/1997 (click on article to make it bigger):

Cincinnati could have had this years ago:

Burnaby Personal Rapid Transit booster claims PRT is "one of the nails in their socialist transit coffin."

2012-01-14T16:44:00.000-08:00

From the PRT Forum:

MISTER, which most on the site are familiar with, uses supported pods, tried to get in the line-up, but its proposal rejected because it arrived a day late (and perhaps a dollar short, since MR offered to built it solely as a private transit system – meaning no funding whatever from the government). Unfortunately, the local press portrayed it as a 'single rider rail car”, which it most definitely was not.

In another post, the pod booster becomes more... emphatic:

Maybe I should clarify. It wasn't a day late. I personally delivered MR's proposal and can speak personally that it arrived BEFORE the deadline. Jack (Slade) pegged it right:“They can ...make anything appear late, mis-filed, or even lost”. And in this case, they did. And, as I pointed out, sanitized any mention of PRT as an option from their site, save CH2H Hill's vague mention -- and dismissal.

As for PRT's strengths and point-to-point, a major point in MR's proposal was that instead of point-to-point and merely serving the university community, it could make numerous stops – not just around the university – and include the surrounding community to boot. That's what I call a plus – not a negative! As for CH2M Hill having "gained a good understanding of PRT", please. They're as biased as biased can be. I had a similar experience with it/them at Salt Lake City and a dose of the same contemptuousness in considering it as an option in an area called Sugarhouse.

Someone's going to give those guys a comeupins, and I'm thinking of electing myself. Back to Translink, though, interesting that the project is being shelved, ostensibly because of the high cost: $156 million. I'm wondering if the thought of being sued by those who would be subjected to the endless stream of peeping toms on the overflights was also considered. I love this Portland resident's exercise of his First Amendment right [link not safe for work].

As for Jack's comment: “How can anybody refuse a proposal that's free”. Dead on. What part of FREE doesn't Translink understand? Or want to. Maybe what Translink and other transit authorities really do understand is that PRT -- or anything else that can be privately run -- is one of the nails in their socialist transit coffin.

As for 2G and your goal of 2.5 seconds, I'm reminded that Cabinentaxi demonstrated .5 seconds back in the 1970s, and while I congratulate you for getting it actually running, I hardly categorize it in the same league as MISTER or any other suspended form of transit. Perhaps it's time to re-categorize PRT into the two camps it actually is.

Dave Brough

Yup, talk to a PRT promoter for more than a few minutes, then the right-wing, libertarian jargon starts to burble out. The pod people like to talk about how PRT can pay for itself, but if you ask how, they don't have a clue.

Another Ridiculous Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Rejected

2012-01-12T14:43:00.000-08:00

Ollie Mikosza, the Polish inventor and promoter of a ridiculous hanging pod PRT systems MISTER, is whining that his proposal was rejected because he turned it in late (Barnaby Now):

The idea of conveying large groups of people via transit is outdated, Mikosza said, as most people want flexibility and comfort when travelling.

The MISTER system would be operated on a private commercial basis, according to Mikosza, and wouldn't cost TransLink any money to run.

The City of Burnaby would be offered a five percent shareholder stake in the operation, and a seat on the board of directors, he added.

Because the system would require fewer materials than a gondola system, it would be cheaper to build, Mikosza said.

The MISTER plan would cost about $50 million to build, he said.

The gondola project is estimated at $70 million, according to TransLink.

Mikosza was upset, and said that his project wasn't considered in the business case stage of the project, because his application to manage the business case arrived late.

The pod people are always pretending to be victims. In this case as in others, the problem is PRT is not what the project calls for. Here is an evaluation of PRT for the project by CH2MHIll (PDF):

5.3.7 Personal Rapid Transit (PRT)

Benefits

Personal rapid transit is based on small, automated vehicles operating on a dedicated network of guideways. The premise of these systems is that they can provide high frequency, on-demand service with a high degree of privacy given the small vehicles and, ideally, point-to-point service without intermediate stops. They are meant to function like a horizontal elevator and provide a level of service like that of a private automobile but as a public transit service. Relatively few PRT systems are in regular operation with the best known one being in Morgantown, West Virginia. New systems have recently opened in Masdar City, UAE; and a prototype as a parking shuttle at London’s Heathrow Airport.

Drawbacks

Very few PRT systems are in operation and all are unique so it is difficult to identify “typical” characteristics. PRT systems are optimally deployed where there is moderate demand among a group of origins and destinations, which is not the case for this higher volume, point-to-point application. The capacity required here is also approaching the limit of what has been identified as reasonable for many systems, and likely exceeds it. Further, PRT systems need alignments (typically elevated) that are independent of other traffic and so incur surface impacts, albeit these are intended to be a lower scale than for other ground-level technologies.

Conclusion

PRT is not considered suitable for this application as the ridership demand is higher than such systems are designed for and the point-to-point nature of demand would not play to PRT’s strengths.

"Relatively few PRT systems are in regular operation with the best known one being in Morgantown, West Virginia." which often experiences breakdowns and electrical fires.

For laughs, watch this hilarious MISTER PRT video:

Fire Caused Chaos on the WVU Personal Rapid Transit

2012-01-12T08:44:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I wrote that the safety problems of the WVU PRT are the result of WVU's institutional support and cult-like adherence to the PRT ideology that can admit no fault to an obviously, deeply flawed concept:

...the WVU PRT was created to monkey-wrench conventional modes of transit and will be expected to function as a paragon of "gadgetbahn" for as long as they can keep it going.

It is about the triumph of anti-transit ideology and futuristic fantasies over reality and common sense.

As new information becomes available about this recent incident, it will be interesting to see if PRT boosters at West Virginia University will continue to "showcase" the deeply flawed and dangerous system as "the wave of the future."

From The Daily Athenaeum article titled "Electrical fire causes PRT shutdown":

The West Virginia University Personal Rapid Transit system shut down Wednesday due to an electrical fire in the PRT substation between the Creative Arts Center and the Engineering PRT station around 12:30 p.m.

"They were starting to notice anomalies – certain things stopping and (PRT officials) couldn't figure out why," said WVU spokeswoman Diana Mazzella. "Then they discovered the fire, and the system was immediately shut down."

The fire then spread to another break cabinet, according to Associate Director of PRT Administration Arlie Forman.
The Morgantown Fire Department responded to the fire, Mazzella said.

For the students, the experience was chaotic and terrifying:

Max Carozza, a senior finance student, said he was stuck on the PRT for 30 minutes on the track along Beechurst Avenue.

"The lights flickered, and it shut off," he said. "It slowly died. The PRT voice told us to hang tight."

PRT workers then located the car and led the seven people on the PRT tracks to the Beechurst PRT station.

Devin Novak, a sophomore nursing student, said she waited on the PRT for an hour before she was rescued.

"They said it took so long because a girl was claustrophobic and they needed an ambulance for her," Novak said.

Novak asid that before being rescued, another student on the PRT tried to pry the door open herself, but was quickly told over the car's intercom not to proceed.

"You could tell something bad was happening," she said.

After walking to the Seneca Center area on the PRT track, Novak said she waited for 20 minutes to catch a bus before calling a friend to get picked up.

"All of the buses were crazy because there were so many people leaving," she said.

The obvious solution is to shut the WVU PRT down for good and rely on proven, safer modes of transit.

It will also be interesting to see whether the mainstream media continues to publish puff pieces about the Morgantown PRT. Here is a re-post of my 2007 DMO post "New York Times Publishes Puff Piece on the WVU PRT":

**************************

In May, I predicted that Mark Olson's pals at the Advanced Transit Association (ATRA) would crank up the PRT publicity machine as a preemptive whitewash for Olson's role in the PRT scam in time for his upcoming trial.

Today, the New York Times published yet another puff piece about the Morgantown PRT... Google News has links to the others.

The Morgantown PRT is an expensive flop. I have collected stories about how students and faculty hate the Morgantown PRT because it is so unreliable and it fries squirrels.

Here's the Times article:

City’s White Elephant Now Looks Like a Transit Workhorse

By SEAN D. HAMILL

MORGANTOWN, W.Va., June 4 — During its troubled years of construction and testing in the early 1970s, the Personal Rapid Transit system that snakes through this hilly college town was derided as a fiasco and a waste of money that perhaps should be dynamited rather than finished.

...the article should have stopped there, but it continues with the traditional fluff we've seen in articles about PRT over the years... let's skip to Larry Fabian's quote in the Times:

“This is the only operating P.R.T. system in the world,” said Larry Fabian, treasurer of the Advanced Transit Association, an organization based in Virginia that promotes advanced rapid transit technologies and held a conference in May in Morgantown. “After more than 30 years, it’s still unique.”

... The Times says Fabian is the treasuerer for ATRA, but in a similar, May 31st puff piece, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, said Fabian was the "director" of ATRA:

"There are 130 automated systems worldwide, but only one like this," said Lawrence Fabian of Boston, director of the Advanced Transit Association, which deals with futuristic transit programs. "Its characteristics are unique,"

...and why is the WVU Morgantown PRT "unique"? The Times has part of the the answer:

But it is also expensive.

University and local government officials realize they are not likely to get the federal government to finance the expansion, as it did the original project. They are talking about coming up with local and state financing.

... can't get Federal money? That's pathetic when you consider that the Senator representing West Virginia is Robert Byrd.... it's probably more like hardly any transportation experts think the WVU PRT is worth expanding... the Times quotes one expert saying that:

“The infrastructure requirements are such that it is not realistic to think it could be adopted in highly developed U.S. cities,” Jonathan E. D. Richmond, a transportation expert, said in an e-mail message from Singapore, where he is advising the government.

...there's more fluff in the Times article about ridership etc. and then there's this bit of reality thrown in at the end:

Still, it does not run often enough for people who do not attend the university or work there.

“There’s a real problem,” said Bruce Summers, 64, who has lived in Morgantown for 34 years and works downtown. “When the university is not in session, it’s closed. You can’t rely on it. If you want to get downtown people to use it, you’ve got to do it another way.”

... wait, didn't the article start off by saying the Morgantown PRT was reliable? Recently, the new Mayor of Kansas City had this to say about the Morgantown PRT:

Mark Funkhouser used to ride West Virginia University's Personal Rapid Transit system, which he recalled "was broken down half the time."

Now he'll help develop a light rail system for Kansas City, Mo., population 450,000.

...Funkhouser was also quoted saying the WVU PRT "wasn't really mass transit".

So, why did the Times run this puff piece for PRT? Does all this recent PRT publicity have something to do with Rep. Mark Olson's trial?

ATRA's Larry Fabian, who is quoted in these puff pieces sent me a gloating e-mail after Rep. Mark Olson and Michele Bachmann won last November:

How is that you haven't posted the results of Tuesday's elections yet?

Bucking the Democrat thumping, Minnesota's two PRTistias were reelected, I see. Wouldn't honesty urge you to post that on your lovely website?

Larry Fabian
The One Who You So Kindly Told to %#$@ Off

Larry Fabian has a company that promotes various silly PRT projects like Higherway PRT and Ed Anderson's PRT International (no website yet).

Is it possible that Olson delayed his trial until all this favorable publicity aboout his pet project was published?

Ken Avidor agrees with professionals who say that WVU PRT isn't Personal Rapid Transit but AGT (automated Group Transport.

**************************

In 2011, there was yet another puff piece about the Morgantown PRT in Governing Magazine titled "America’s One and Only Personal Rapid Transit System". The article abounds with irony:

In 1995, the computer control system was upgraded and now work is under way to modernize the individual control and propulsion systems in each of the 71 cars that remain in service. The PRT maintenance crew is proud of the fact that of the 80 million passengers who have ridden on the PRT since its start, no serious injuries or fatalities have occurred.

As afternoon traffic builds on the local streets, slowing movement to a crawl, the PRT vehicles continue to glide past quietly and efficiently. “The Morgantown PRT stands as an example of how cities can better cope with pollution, traffic and environmental demands,” Foreman says.

UPDATE: This video shows PRT promoter Larry Fabian talking proudly about the WVU PRT:

Note the emphasis on safety:

Another WVU Personal Rapid Transit Electrical Fire

2012-01-11T12:19:00.000-08:00

Press Release via WVU Today:

An electrical fire in a Personal Rapid Transit substation at West Virginia University has interrupted service to passengers.

Some time after noon, an electrical fire disrupted power to the PRT system. The fire was extinguished and the damage is being assessed. All passengers have been evacuated from the PRT.

The exact cause of the fire is being determined, but it appears to be electrical in nature. Passengers were in no immediate danger and no injuries have been reported.

PRT employees are working to get the system operational by 5 p.m. today (Wednesday, Jan. 11), according to Hugh Kierig, director of Transportation and Parking at WVU.

While the PRT is out of service, students, faculty and staff may use the Mountain Line bus service or the WVU shuttles that have been provided for use between PRT stations. Those with WVU ID’s may ride the Mountain Line for free.

Nothing new - this is from a 2010 editorial in the WVU The Daily Athenaeum:

t's pretty safe to say anyone who has ridden West Virginia University's PRT system has some kind of horror story.
Typically, it's the same complaint – it breaks down or it's is late getting to one station over another. However, recent incidents have proven to be more serious.

We've had multiple reports from riders about seeing a PRT car filled with smoke and a fire erupting in one of the cars Thursday.
Students in the car were then forced to walk the tracks as the system came to a complete stop – a safeguard for such incidents.
However, these incidents have been downplayed by the University.

The issues were attributed to "minor problems" and "arching electrical phases on track" that "caused a flash and cloud of smoke," according to Director of Transportation and Parking Hugh Kierig, by way of Becky Lofstead, assistant vice president for University Communications.

As reported in Monday's edition of The Daily Athenaeum, University spokesman John Bolt said there had been several electrical problems but none were major.

The PRT is synonymous with its problems, despite continual reassurances from University-provided statistics of high reliability and constant uptime.

The system is a flawed behemoth. There isn't enough money to completely overhaul the system, despite constant funding being poured into it for upgrades.

Most recently, the University closed the system for an entire summer, spending $2.5 million on track and system issues.
These upgrades weren't designed to fix all issues, and they haven't.

This is what I wrote back in 2010 about the so-called WVU PRT:

The PRT hucksters will often cite the so-called West Virginia University's Personal Rapid Transit in Morgantown as a successful example of PRT "technology":

A heavy weight PRT network opened in Morgantown, WV in 1975 and has delivered 110 million injury-free passenger miles.

But the WVU PRT is neither PRT (it's really an ordinary, automated people-mover similar to what you see in airports) or successful.

The Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit breaks down so often, the University has a Twitter account that keeps track of the breakdowns for students.

In an editorial published Monday in the Daily Athenaeum titled "The unreliable PRT says a lot about this University" WVU Graduate student Michael Levy tells the truth about the deeply flawed system:

In the best of times, I can leave my office in LSB 20 minutes before class starts in Evansdale and be on time. That makes a total round-trip travel time of 40 minutes.

That's certainly not convenient, and multiplied across everyone who uses the PRT, it's a huge inefficiency, but it's not totally unreasonable.

However, at least three times already this semester, my daily PRT adventure to Evansdale has been delayed by more than 15 minutes.

I'm not talking about times when the platform is extra full, and it takes a couple cars to get going. Three times in the first four weeks of the semester, the PRT has been down when I tried to use it. Each time, I end up walking into class with my head hung low, muttering an apology for being late. Sometimes I'll add, "Sorry, the PRT was down," but it feels like such a cliched, used-up, one-size-fits-all excuse that it's not even worth saying.

Michael Levy goes on to describe how frequent delays cause problems with recording student attendence. But, he is also concerned about the ecological cost:

Last week, a resource management professor had a meeting with a consulting firm downtown.
Being ecologically minded, he decided to take the PRT instead of driving.

But the PRT was down, and he showed up 20 minutes late, uttering the same excuse that I'm sure he's so tired of hearing from students.

As a result of this, people are more likely to drive, even when traveling a route serviced by the PRT. And the traffic and the air pollution get even worse.

Just a couple of years ago, the PRT received around $1.5 million to improve efficiency and reduce downtime. Was it even worse before that?

That the PRT is broken doesn't just mean reduced efficiency on campus.

Students learn more from what they see than what they're told. The PRT sets an example of a system that works most of the time, but it can't be depended on. Is that what we want to instill in our students?

Levy pleads with the administration:

Whatever it will take, WVU needs to do an honest accounting of the problem and figure out how to address the issue.

Sorry Mr. Levy, they won't.

The reason is the WVU PRT was created to monkey-wrench conventional modes of transit and will be expected to function as a paragon of "gadgetbahn" for as long as they can keep it going.

It is about the triumph of anti-transit ideology and futuristic fantasies over reality and common sense.

See also: Editorial - Morgantown PRT "Horror Story" & "Flawed Behemoth"

Another Bogus Personal Rapid Transit Project Bites the Dust

2012-01-06T09:21:00.000-08:00

A PRT project in India has been cancelled.

Cogeneration & On-Site Power Production Magazine says Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT) won't have pods:

GIFT had made changes to the original plan, which had proposed subterranean roads and four levels of underground parking, leaving the surface purely for pedestrians. It had also envisaged a Personal Rapid Transit System similar to the one operational at London's Heathrow airport and one planned for Amritsar. Now, the parking will be on the surface since underground parking and roads are too expensive.

The Personal Mass Rapid Transit System has been dropped as the Metro would come right up to GIFT. However, cars will remain in the periphery as residents and visitors will use district-cooled, moving walkways to get to the city centre. The city is being planned in such a way that future planners do not have to dig for 100 years.

I expect the much ballyhooed (and protested) PRT project in Amritsar to get canned too. Fairwood India still has PRT on its GIFT page.

Shareholder: Taxi 2000 Corporation is "Moribund"

2011-12-24T14:34:00.000-08:00

Fridley Patch - "Is Fridley Company the Future of Transit or 'Moribund'?"

Michael Andregg, a geneticist who teaches at the University of St. Thomas, was an early investor in Taxi 2000.

“I didn’t put money into it as an investment,” he said. “I put money into it as an investment into a visionary company.”

Andregg is still hopeful about the future of PRT, but since Taxi 2000’s founder, J. Edward Anderson, left in 2005 and the company’s new leadership sued him for retaining proprietary information, Andregg said he has seen minimal efforts on the part of the company to reach out to shareholders and he considers the company’s promise to be lost.

“They exist but they’re kind of moribund in Fridley,” he said. “I don’t pay any attention to Taxi 2000.”

This "moribund" company tried to get local, state and federal money for a testing facility in 2010 in Winona.

The PRT-promoting Advanced Transit Association (ATRA) has a newly revamped website that does not list Taxi 2000 as a vendor

Taxi 2000 does appear in a lesser category "testing" on another page.

Other recent posts about Taxi 2000:

Taxi 2000 Corporation Spent Nearly $80K Since 2004 Lobbying in Minnesota

Bachmann's Pal Pod Lobbyist Edwin Cain Lobbied for Shady Veterans Charity

3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists in Minnesota

Timid, CYA Response by the Personal Rapid Transit "Industry" to Dubious PRT Systems and Companies Seeking Public and Private $$$

2011-12-19T06:58:00.000-08:00

When an entire "industry" is based in whole or part on misrepresentation of facts as would-be PRT vendors have done for decades, how can they possibly rein in PRT companies that are at best questionable. The attempt by some PRT aficionados to differentiate reality from fantasy in the marketing of PRT seems to be at the heart of the recent dispute on their forum.

Nathan "Making the world safe for Personal Rapid Transit" Koren, formerly an ULTra employee who who worked on the Amritsar pod project that recently sparked protests by shopkeepers, has drawn a timid line in the sand:

...In my view, it's perfectly appropriate for PRT developers to make PowerPoint-based pitches to venture capital /
institutional investors, for the purposes of securing additional R&D funding -- but if you're going to pitch to campuses or (especially) governments, then you need to have already demonstrated that you can build and operate the hardware that you say you can.

This line Koren is drawing in the sand would likely put ULTra, Vectus and 2GetThere, with small demonstration podcar projects (not truly PRT) on one side of the line and and scores of fantasy PRT systems without much more than a model or computer-created visuals and videos on the other side of the line. But how will the PRT "industry" enforce this wimpy edict? Without robust vetting and due diligence, just one fraudulent PRT company could ruin the chances for the other companies.

The PRT-promoting Advanced Transit Association has revamped their website (with the mushiest definition of PRT ever). On the "Vendors" page there are only three vendors listed. Taxi 2000, Skytran, Jpods, PRT International, Maglev Movers and more are not listed. This is what ATRA says:

When considering advanced transit systems it should be clear what capabilities have been proven today and what potential a system has towards the (long term) future. ATRA represents both: providing a platform for all who share its vision towards the future, while uniting corporate members with proven experience and applications in the industry.

The corporate members of ATRA are parties active in the various disciplines within the field of advanced transit. The vendors that are corporate members are listed below ( ULTra, Vectus, 2getthere).

On the "History" page Taxi 2000 is mentioned only once and does not have a link to its website. ULTra, Vectus, 2getthere have links. Skytran is not mentioned, nor is Jpods. J. Edward Anderson is mentioned only once and his company PRT International gets no link or mention. On the "Systems" page Taxi 2000. Jpods and Skytran are relegated to lesser categories ("Conceptual", "Testing") and do not have links to their websites. It will be interesting to see how these new distinctions will effect efforts to shovel more taxpayers' dollars to PRT consultants and vendors who are NOT on ATRA's preferred vendor list.

Also, some advice to PRT promoters; posting a bunch of tweets when you suspect something fishy is going on is not due diligence, at best it's CYA.

UPDATE: More about Maglev Movers via Seattle PRT promoter David Gow:

Cockroft has unsavory incidents in his background. He had a business run-in with the law in Cyprus, which deported him in 2001. In 2003 the deportation was upheld by the Cyprus Supreme Court:

I think David Gow has enough there for ATRA and other's in the PRT "industry" to notify the authorities, will they? Or will they just continue to CYA?

Interesting New Personal Rapid Transit Vendor - Maglev Movers

2011-12-16T19:30:00.000-08:00

I always say that Personal Rapid Transit promoters are either crackpots, con men or crooks. It will be interesting to see which category Maglev Movers falls into.

On another website, the Maglev Movers describe an interesting finance package utilizing a "nonrecourse loan":

A loan in which the lender cannot claim more than the collateral as repayment in the event that payments on the loan are stopped. Thus, a group of investors may purchase an asset with a down payment and the proceeds from a nonrecourse loan. In the event that the investment turns sour, the investors are not apt to lose more than the down payment and payments already made on the loan. The unpaid balance on the loan will be absorbed by the lender.

non-recourse loan is secured by some form of collateral, your securities. If there is a default, the borrower keeps the loan proceeds and the lender only claims the collateral. The borrower’s liability is limited to the collateral pledged for the loan. In fact, the borrower has the right to walk away from the loan, can you really call this debt?

With a non-recourse asset based loan, the individual or business entity is not held liable so there is never any effect on your credit record.

Take a look at their contract.

The genius behind Maglev Movers is CEO and prolific tweeter Graham Cockroft. Graham Cockroft also has a Facebook page

A link from his FB page:

Graham CockroftSwingers UK

Hi from sunny Portugal. The owner of the local hotel has engaged me to make it work for the next six months. Its got 30 rooms and is steeped in history. So, I put some feelers out and got myself a company that can supply 30 girls to look after the people who book the rooms. It`ll be a no holds barred and anything goes long weekend, Fri-Mon. If you have an interest and fancy getting away from it all and having your own private concubine-geisha girl and lotsa golf, walks on the beach, good country music and anything goes........we`ll have to talk.

There's an enormous number of Maglev Mover videos, adding to the already enormous amount of PRT videos on You Tube.
Here's one:

UPDATE: Is the guy behind Twitter handle @Cymply also Cymply333?

Update: And he has a ~~partner~~, y'know, this guy:

UPDATE: Mr. Cockroft emailed me this message:

Kindly remove this statement as this man has no relationship with our company.

Along with that message, is a company address in London - for fun, Google that address. Also on that email was a phone number - I Googled that too and it led, among other interesting places a hilarious ~~editorial~~ opinion piece in the Algarve Daily News that is the typical boilerplate, snake-oil pitch of Personal Rapid Transit hucksters everywhere, One part of it:

A system built with borrowed money may cost around €10 million for every mile BUT after ten miles it pays for itself as people ride it.

Lets look further €500,000 a month x 12 months = €6,000.000 p.a. x 10 years' payments = €60,000,000 x 2 = €120 million in 20 years' time. That's the first ten miles paid for, the rest looks after itself!

Might sound like a lot of money, but don’t we have 10 million people to support this? not 500,000 believe me, this will be paid for and covering the whole of Portugal in 5/10 years creating tons of jobs, cheap travel, millions in tourist tickets ( we will have made taxis obsolete and absorbed them in technology) and all in all bringing us back to prosperity.

Now, the government need to start building this now.

www.opipt.com it will cost them nothing as lenders will lend and whilst we are at it, www.maglevwindturbine.com, we can create some real wind power as well, another little freebie.............

Oh, and there's a different address for the company (phone and email redacted by me):

Graham Cockroft
Mister Mandate
Portugal
Mob +351------
Tel. +351- -----
cymply@-------

And what's with "Mister Mandate"? Hilarious!

UPDATE: Okay, I got to stop this... but one more link, a forum called Out and About. Here's Mr. "Cymply":

I was a motorhome owner `till last year when I retired and settled down in Portugal. There are 50,000 motorhomers arriving here every year and I can well understand why they come.

I lived for two years on the beach in mine and loved every minute of it. The fishermen at 4 a.m setting off to sea, the smell of the sea and wildlife, its unsurpassed here in Portugal, don`t be surprised if a stork comes to live you whilst your here. Take your bike off the rack and peddle 500 yds and there`ll be at a seafood restaurant, cheap as chips so to speak. So much to see and so little time.

Most motorhomers come to winter here, why? because we don`t have one !!

Its beautiful in winter, like a English spring and autumn all rolled into one.

But the natives have revolted, they want you off the cliff tops and into the campsites where they can charge you extortionate fees. They want you out of the municipal car parks and under control. They want your money as they class you as none paying guests.

This last month they declared war and decided to clamp you after seven o`clock if you are not on a camp site by that time, trouble is you`ll have a job finding something that you`ll like.

Personally, I never did like paying to park, my Hobby 750 set me back 55k with extras so I believe I have the same rights as a mini........to park where I like as long as its legal.

The Algarve is a paradise for us guys, we really ought to do something about it.........no need to even think of fighting the system, there isn`t one............anybody out there with ideas, your welcome.

Regards
Graham

One response to that post:

Hi Cymply - welcome.

I must admit though, that you, and others, appear to have brought this on yourselves - staying for TWO YEARS on the same beach is absolutely shameful in my view! How on earth would you feel if you were one of the residents ... it's people who outstay their welcome that have caused the horrendous problems that some areas are experiencing. Those of us who are at places for one or, at the very most, two nights, being careful where we park so as not to offend people, and act responsibly, are the ones who lose out because of the actions of people like you.

I'm sorry if that offends you, but it is my honest opinion.

There's more responses along those lines.

Business Traveller Tweets Complaints About ULTra Pods at Heathrow

2011-12-16T08:33:00.000-08:00

As I've reported before, the so-called ULTra PRT (not a real PRT system) is using Twitter to evaluate it's fledgling demonstration project at Heathrow Airport. Most of the tweets re-tweeted at ULTra's page on Twitter have an uncanny similarity; effusive praise, many exclamation marks, references to science fiction movies, most reading very much like the usual pre-fabricatred PRT puffery we've come to expect over the years. For example:

On the Heathrow T5 pod from business parking. V 2001 Space Odyssey!

Sometimes, reality peeks through the clouds of hype:

business parking Rapid Transit system was a bit of a joke. Queues, slow and laughably advertised for 5. Seriously? I had to crouch on floor.

Used T5 business parking this morning. Seriously - a joke. The rapid pod system is anything but. Queues, slow and not designed for business!

@----- yep. Very disappointing. Too slow to get pods to stations. Q. Too small Windows. Two large escape hatches block view.

Used T5 business parking this morning. Seriously - a joke. The rapid pod system is anything but. Queues, slow and not designed for business!

ULTra is using the supposed "success" of the Heathrow pods to market their product in Minnesota and in India and elsewhere. Before they risk any further investment in PRT, public officials and investors should perform due diligence and insist on an independent evaluation of the Heathrow pods by a transit experts.

Read also:

"Article Predicts Personal Rapid Transit Will Take Business Away From Taxis and Rickshaws in Amritsar"

"Shopkeepers in India Are Fasting in Protest Against the Personal Rapid Transit Boondoggle"

Article Predicts Personal Rapid Transit Will Take Business Away From Taxis and Rickshaws in Amritsar

2011-12-15T09:54:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, I posted "Shopkeepers in India Are Fasting in Protest Against the Personal Rapid Transit Boondoggle". It's not just shopkeepers who have to worry about losing their livelihoods to the elevated pods.

Projects Monitor:

In India, the ULTra system can be optimised by offering cheaper tickets on a seat-by-seat basis with ride sharing, and premium tickets which cover the cost of an entire vehicle. ULTra fares will be competitive with fares charged by taxis and autorickshaws, which are currently the main form of short-range urban transport. These different options allow the same ULTra infrastructure to simultaneously function as a lowcost, high-capacity people mover, and as a premium taxi service.

The article doesn't say what will happen to all the taxi drivers and rickshaw operators who will be put out of business. The article goes on to applaud the predicted "shift" in revenue from locally owned rickshaws and taxis to an automated system operated by a UK-based corporation:

There could also be a shift towards PRT from other road intensive transportation. Every day in Amritsar nearly one lakh pilgrims and tourists visit the Golden Temple, and they mostly depend on rickshaws or autorickshaws. Reduced congestion on the ground will even enable these transport systems to work more efficiently with enhanced revenues accruing to the operators.

"The Personal Rapid Transit system is a high-capacity system which is projected to make approximately 14 million passenger trips to the Golden Temple on a daily basis. The cost of the Amritsar project could be nearly 250 crore and is to be taken up in public-private partnership.

Operating as a "public-private partnership"? The citizens of Amritsar really need to read the fine print regarding that. Given that this project is projected to be the "World’s first and largest urban PRT system", Amritsar could be on the hook if this project collided with reality like PRT projects in the past.

Shopkeepers in India Are Fasting in Protest Against the Personal Rapid Transit Boondoggle

2011-12-13T10:49:00.000-08:00

Crossposted at Dump Bachmann

Yesterday, I posted about the pods of Fridley. Bachmann authored legislation for and promoted the Personal Rapid Transit back in 2004. As the pod hucksters have pissed off one city after another in Europe and America, the would-be vendors of pods are exporting their phony flim-flam to Asia. The following photo and article is from the India Tribune:

The traders fear that the 20-feet high track of magnetic pods will adversely affect their business. The traders sat on a dharna and raised slogans against the government’s decision, which they alleged is aimed at gaining cheap publicity.

Sukhbir Singh Badal denied any opposition to the project as the local authorities had invited views from all quarters before finalising the project. The traders resent that with the introduction of magnetic pods, their clientele will have direct access to the Golden Temple without halting at the market to shop. This will affect hundreds of shops in the area.

“The tourists are our main clientele. Now, they will move directly to the Golden Temple and will not get a chance to feel the true essence of the trade practices in city. This mode of transport will defy the basic character of the city,” said Nirmal Singh, a trader.

IBN:

Sukhbir lays foundation stone of Pod system amidst protest

Amidst protest, Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Monday laid the foundation stone of Rs 300 crore Personal Rapid Transport (PRT) Pod car transportation system in Amritsar, which once completed, would make the Holy City only the second in the world after London to have such transport facility.

Actually, the pod system is at an airport since September and with only two stops and no elevated stations, it can hardly called a working PRT system. No PRT system has successfully operated in revenue service anywhere. The battery-powered, glorified golf carts have not been tested in an extremely hot or cold climate and yet it's been proposed for India and Minnesota,

Shopkeepers apprehend that the system would adversely hit their business.

The foundation stone was laid outside the Hall Gate where shopkeepers raised anti-government slogans and staged dharnas.

A dharna is "a fast held at the door of an offender in India as an appeal for justice."

Not the first time, pRT has provoked a mass protest, read; "Pod Off! Residents oppose Daventry PRT scheme".

This pod project will, no doubt fail to materialize like scores of other doomed pod projects. If it did, it would be a hideous visual scar on the historic city:

Personal Rapid Transit Developer Declares Skytran a "Sham"

2011-12-05T12:59:00.000-08:00

UPDATE: PRT gets a swift kick in the pants at the Gondola Project blog:

The fundamental logic behind PRT is quite simply flawed with most advocates of the technology blind to the economic and technological limitations of it. But that doesn’t prevent it from being continually trotted out as transportation messiah.

Read on...

Last week I reported on the pod promoters circular firing squad, now another pod promoter has entered the fray.

Katie Fehrenbacher reports on the latest PRT boondoggle to go belly-up. What's different about this gadgetbahn debacle is it was killed on the drawing board by its own inventor:

The founder of Mint.com, Aaron Patzer, has been researching alternative urban transportation under a company called Swift over the past six months, but he has determined that the personal maglev system he had been envisioning is economically not viable for a company to produce. Patzer described all of his findings and development in a blog post (hat tip to Tech Crunch), including the high economics of such a transportation network.

In the end Patzer concludes what Vukan Vuchic, Michael Setty and I have said for years - it's just not feasible.

Patzer says he has abandoned building the project as a company. He calls the failure “fast” and “worthwhile fun” and will be looking for his next venture. He also splits his time as VP of Product Innovation at Intuit, which bought Mint two years ago for $170 million, points out Tech Crunch.

With that kind of dough, Patzer can afford to waste his time on pie-in-the-sky fantasy transport concepts, but not federal, state and local governments. MnDOT commissioner Tom Sorel is rumored to be considering wasting $1.6 million on a PRT study. Sorel should just read Patzer's analysis why PRT is a waste of time.

Not content to deep-six his own flawed concept Patzer goes on to trash Skytran In the swiftprt.com comments:

I’ve met with the SkyTran people. In my opinion it’s a sham that’s gone no where in the 15 years they’ve been advocating for it. If you look at their website, they claim things like runs on the power of two hairdryers (let’s say 3kW). Obviously they’ve never done even the basic energy calculations – you burn far more than that in aerodynamic drag at even automobile (100km/hr) speeds, even if you have a perfect drag coefficient (0.06 for a streamlined body), and a cross sectional area of less than 1m^2. They also claim capacities equivalent to 3 lanes of highway. Ridiculous to anyone who’s built a true physics based simulator (as I did with Swift).

For more about Skytran, read:

Meet Jerry Sanders - Personal Rapid Transit & Gynecology Gadget Entrepreneur

Wacky Skytran Pod People Invade Detroit, Australia and Canada

Skytran is featured in this video titled "Phoenix light rail is Trash!":

Pod People Fight Over the Definition of Personal Rapid Transit

2011-11-26T20:25:00.000-08:00

I have always said PRT is a faith-based transportation concept. Since it doesn't exist in the real world, the very nature of PRT is a subject for endless discussion for the few acolytes left in the pod cult.

Once again, another impassioned debate about the definition has flared up on the pod people's "Transport Innovators" forum. The florid fracas over how many seats should be allowed in a PRT pod reads like the fabled arguments of medieval scholars debating how many angels could sit on the head of a pin.

Some of the pod people challenged PRT huckster Steve Raney's assertion that the new definition of PRT was approved by The Advanced Transit Association (ATRA). The former Chairman of ATRA Dennis Manning fired off this curt admonishment:

Steve:

Did ATRA have anything to do with writing or posting this paper? If not you should not have used their name in the title. It's deceptive no matter what the merits of the paper might be.

Dennis

To which Raney replied:

Dennis,

There were a couple of e-mails today between "ATRA EU" / "ATRA Industry Group" and ATRA members today. There were some ruffled feathers. There was concern about the review process, but it wasn't something that resulted in an escalation to the point of leveling a charge of "deception." I know that ATRA has been following details of the formation of ATRA EU. There's no ATRA EU web site or anything explanatory yet, but I believe something will arise at some point. I, myself, am not an expert on the details of ATRA EU (I'm an expert on the "first use" of the document). And we're in summer, so there shouldn't be an expectation of immediate gratification to the questions raised. I expect there's a mutually beneficial way
forward.

How's that for yet another non-answer?

- Steve

Raney's "non-answer" snark was not well received by Manning:

Steve:

Well you dance around but I think it's fair to say ATRA as an organization didn't underwrite your paper. No deception???

Bullshit!

How's that for a direct answer? My take is that you unsportsmanly used ATRA to promote your own product.

Dennis

... and added another disapproving missive for good measure:

Steve:

This is getting way too deep. Until this paper popped up I'd never heard of the ATRA Industry Group. Who the hell is the ATRA Industry Group? When did they get the blessing of ATRA? You've got a lot of explaining to do to justify connecting ATRA to this
paper which is clearly written to promote the interest of the Big 3. I'm not even arguing that overall this isn't a good move for PRT. But as past Chairman of ATRA I know first hand how much ATRA strived to be PRT system neutral. The ATRA I knew would never endorse this paper.

Dennis

Anupam Vibhuti puts in his two cents:

All this is 'perhaps' a good method for 'crafting' oligopoly. I also see this as the first overt 'deceptive' step if all this has been attempted without express approval of ATRA or majority of PRT proponents in a transparent manner...

And so does Dick Gronning:

This is interesting...

I KNOW that Dr. J Edward Anderson is a member of ATRA. So is Joe Lampe. So, PRT Intl, PRT MN, were consulted on this advertizing paper? OR, were these entities excluded from PRT Industry Group and, possibly, PRT EU? Again, what is the relationship between ATRA, ATRA EU, and PRT Industry Group? Who are the officials? (We already know about ATRA)

Dick

The argument goes on and on... and these people want the taxpayers to spend millions of dollars on something even they cannot define?

Personal Rapid Transit is Just a Very Old Idea Dressed Up as "Innovation"

2011-11-25T05:52:00.000-08:00

Jarrett Walker at Human Transit:

Yesterday, twice in one day, I encountered major news articles in media I generally trust (the New York Times and the Atlantic) which described very old ideas as though they were innovations.

Walker goes on to criticize the two reports for not doing proper research which would have revealed that the "new" concepts were really old. But, does it matter?

So my question for discussion is: Should we care? Should it matter if someone claims to have invented an idea, if that helps a good idea spread? Am I just being a curmudgeon or killjoy to point these things out? Is there anything wrong with letting people have the idea that the great ideas were theirs?

In the comments:

Good point. False claims of innovation prevent us from looking at what past experience can tell us.

For example, we have innovators telling us that the sustainable communities of the future can be based upon, instead of everybody riding transit, everybody being able to have their own personal little pod that takes them directly between their origin and destination, that requires the building of a whole lot of new infrastructure on which it can operate.

That's never been done before, right?

Yes, for nearly a century, we've had a personal transport system called AUTOMOBILES. For nearly half that time, "innovators" have been wasting our time (and $$$) on PRT - essentially the same thing as automobiles except on monorails and magically automated. To get an idea how ancient PRT and other, similar "gadgetbahn" ideas are, go to UC Berkeley's Transportation Futuristics PRT gallery.

Yet, as this blog documents time and again, the deeply flawed PRT concept is revived and reported as "new" and innovative. The much-hyped ULTra PRT in a carpark at Heathrow Airport is, with a few added tweeks, nearly identical to an automated vehicle system that debuted in another airport carpark in the 1990's.

Read about PRT in this forty-year-old Popular Science puff piece.

And here we go again; another would-be PRT vendor Maglev Movers with a yet another "innovative" variation - this time festooned with logos:

... and of course, the Maglev Movers have a Facebook page. The Maglev Movers website also make all the usual bogus claims and anti-transit talking points - "Will be built and operated without Public Subsidies" and "will be an attraction for tourists". But adds a few new ones including this hilarious claim:

Frost and Sullivan, a reputable market research company anticipate a growth of some $7trillion over the next 3 years in the Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) systems market.

Part of the innovation in Maglev Movers' updated iteration of PRT is they can put your face on their pods, just like a coffee mug - check out Peter "PRT Guru" Muller's mug on this pod:

People Who Live in Glass Pods....

2011-11-11T20:14:00.000-08:00

Today, Internet & computer aficionado Michael Fraase tweeted an objection to City Pages editor Kevin Hoffman about a City Pages article not being properly sourced:

Is @citypages' @panopticon13 helping with the WCCO duck/dog story when it uses a single anonymous source?

I thought that was hilarious since Michael Fraase penned a poorly sourced puff piece for the Utne Reader back in 2003.

Fraase was not amused and tweeted he stood "fully behind the article" and there were "plenty of facts in the article" Fraase also said I was "willfully disingenuous." Fraase also directed me to an unedited version of his pod article.

Fraase challenged me to fact-check his article, so here goes:

The first graf claims:

"The future of sustainable motorized transportation is an enclosed driverless golf-cart-on-a-stick [PRT]"

Well, it's nearly nine years since that article and the only "driverless golf-cart-on-a-stick" transport is a few pathetic demonstration models at Heathrow Airport and a basement in the United Arab Emirates - hardly the transportation revolution Frasse and other pod promoters at the time were anticipating.

In his article, Fraase uses the present tense when he describes what PRT can do even though a working, urban PRT system did not exist at the time. For instance, Frasse makes the unproven and bizarrre claim that "PRT moves people the same way the Internet moves data.".

Fraase goes on to claim something that was merely a concept could be less expensive than reality-based transit modes:

Because the cars are simply constructed and lightweight, the guideways can be small, cheap, and cause minimal construction disruption; guideways can be built at an exceptionally low cost of between US$5 million and US$10 million per mile.

Since that article, the only system to go into service has been the ULTra PRT system. Lacking the real-world urban setting that adds complex right-of-way expenses and other costs to transit planning and construction, any comparison is flawed. Transit consultant Michael Setty took look at the rosy cost estimates for PRT in his 2009 white paper (PDF):

ATS Limited has estimated that its particular PRT design would cost between $7 million and $15 million per one-way guideway mile including infrastructure, stations, control systems and vehicles20. Applying the higher ATS figure to a hypothetical, nearly 100% elevated system in Winona results in an estimate of at least $330 million21. This estimate is probably conservative, since the history of new or unproven transportation technologies shows that outspoken proponents often underestimate likely construction costs.

Frasse makes other claims about the efficiency and convenience of PRT that are completely speculative, not factual such as:

A single PRT guideway’s capacity is roughly the same as that of a four-lane highway.

And:

PRT will likely require no operational subsidy.... A commercial endeavor should be able to operate its PRT system in most metropolitan areas without any sort of operational subsidy while generating a fair profit for its owners

Fraase offers no objective, reality-based evidence for this claim or any of the "facts" such as operating costs. Instead, Frasse links to several pro-PRT websites, the Citizens for Personal Rapid Transit, The PRT-promoting Advanced Transit Association and the moribund Taxi 2000 Corporation. Frasse links to "Personal Rapid Transit at the University of Washington", but that link is to Jerry Schneider's gadgetbahn pages on the faculty.washington.edu website. Schneider is one of the anti-LRT monkey-wrenching gang out in the Seattle area (comment on Seattle Transit Blog):

PRT & the Denver Airport boondoggle show us proprietary “alternative” plans to replace the proven technology of light rail run much larger risks of failure. But, to the benefit of Emory Bundy, Richard Harkness, John Niles, Jim MacIsaac, Jerry Schneider, Bill Eager, Jim Horn….and the rest of Kemper Freeman’s gang, it is very rare that fringe transport ideas ever make it off the drawing board. When they do, things get ugly.

But again, light rail always becomes the punching bag.

I tweeted to Frasse that his article lacked any credible sources for his facts. I mentioned two leading transit advocacy organizations in MInnesota - The Sierra Club and Transit for Livable Communities.

Fraase tweeted the folowing:

Cost comparison sources were an NYU economist and someone from U Wash, I believe. TLC would have been great source; space limits.

Fraase's citation of vague sources at universities can best be described as a fallacious appeal to authority.

As for the failure to include TLC as a source because of "space limits"... space limits on a blog?

For the record, TLC and the Sierra Club have resolutions opposing public funding of PRT projects in Minnesota.

Fraase has another post on his blog (illustrated with a pod) whining that buses don't operate often enough for him. In another blog post he makes this snide observation:

Traffic gridlock isn’t yet a problem up here on the far edge, but it’s coming and we regularly need unseen yet heard guidance to get from here to there. And getting from here to there up here almost always means an automobile, one Minneapolis city council member’s grand personal rapid transit (PRT) dream notwithstanding.

The link to the passage referring to a Minneapolis Councilman is broken. The link used to go to the CPRT website's page devoted to Dean Zimmermann's PRT plan for Minneapolis.... this Dean Zimmermann. So much for Mr. Fraase's reliable sources.

Faith-Based Pie-in-the-Sky Boondoggle Cybertran Partner's Right-Wing, Anti-Abortion Tweets

2011-11-03T08:17:00.000-07:00

Good article by Alexis Kenyon about Cybertran in Richmond Confidential. Read the whole thing.

The best part is at the end when Cybertran's Chief Technical Officer Eugene Nishinaga talks about God & gadgetbahn:

And so Nishinaga got a job at Boeing and seven years later moved to BART. In many ways, he said he felt he had missed his calling to join the ministry and redeem souls. Until 2008, outside the Richmond field station, when God spoke to him again.

Nishinaga said: “He said, ‘Look at how you have been raised throughout your career … All of these things are the necessary pieces to put this system together. I opened the door for you once, you did not walk through. I will open the door for you again.’”

It is not surprising to find faith-based jargon among supporters of Personal Rapid Transit. PRT is essentially a faith-based concept - check out Higherway PRT brought to you by the inventor of the Savior Cycle.

Meanwhile, Cybertran's partner and right-winger Allen Payton has been tweeting his opposition to abortion here and here.

U of M's Center For Transportation Studies Wants MnDOT to Waste $1.4 million on PRT Study

2011-10-09T15:35:00.000-07:00

The Humphrey School's Ferrol Robinson is calling it ART, but it's the same old PRT. You can download the silly report at the CTS website.

Bottom line:

The budget to complete a feasibility study and related outreach and education efforts is estimated at $1.4 million, and the anticipated study duration is two years.

This would be a total waste of money.

Other states have wasted money on feasibility studies for PRT. MnDOT can just look up these reports:

New York State (PDF) 2011

New Jersey (PDF) 2007.

OKI Central Loop project - 2001

Here's the conclusion of the OKI report on PRT (PDF):

Personal Rapid Transit

Due to the uncertainty of the technology and costs, Personal Rapid Transit (Taxi 2000) is not recommended as preferred technology for the loop circulator. The Committee encourages Taxi 2000 to continue to develop the design and construct a full-scale test track to address critical questions regarding engineering design, operational feasibility and cost.

Of course, all the "critical questions" remain unanswered because they cannot be answered without a true PRT system in revenue service. But many of the critical questions could be answered by a peer-reviewed study - this study should not be done by MnDOT, but by experts in the urban studies, transportation and engineering fields.

UPDATE: There's also this 2010 study for PRT in Ithaca, NY.

California Democrats Push For Gadgetbahn Project to be Marketed by Conservative Republican

2011-10-07T10:20:00.001-07:00

The above photo and description of Allen Patton is from the San Ramon Exchange Club site.

The company eTranzUSA is a partner with Cybertran (PDF here)

ETU will partner with CyberTran International, Inc. (CTI), the owner of the transit system and help fund the final round of testing to prove the automated, integrated CyberTran system, the only rail system in the world using the ADTS technology. · A joint venture, to be known as CyberTran California, will be formed with 50% ownership by each ETU and CTI, which will own, build, operate and/or license all the systems within the state of California, as well as the TOD’s.

For more about Allen Payton, eTranzUSA and Cybertran see this post.

Do the various politicos, Democrats and self-styled "progressives" (see letters below) who gave their support to Cybertran know about Cybertran's partner eTranzUSA and Allen Patton?

Here are the remarks of a former president of Cybertran saying there was an additional, development-related purpose to a Cybertran project in New York State years ago (facilitating the building of a hotel)

"In fact, if a CyberTran system gets built in the proposed corridor, it will be for one reason only: that it will improve the likelihood that a hotel will be built in the district of the Senate Majority Leader."

Even more disturbing, he admits they were "disguising the project as an economic development project".

"Now I want to be clear here that the Senate Majority Leader, Joe Bruno, is a very smart fellow. He knows what he is doing in proposing a CyberTran application. He understands the risks and the implications of going with an "unproven" technology. He also realizes that there may be some major benefits for the state and the citizenry down the road. But he needs to explain it to his colleagues and constituents not all of whom share his vision and concern for the environment. So disguising the project as an economic development project just makes good political sense. At the same time, if I had been trying to sell some sort of esoteric, high tech gizmo, I would never have even gotten into his office to make my pitch."

Anytime someone talks about "disguising" a project to gain acceptance, that should be a red flag.

There needs to be some due diligence regarding this project. The sound investment maxim should apply here; if it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't.

Here are letters, some using the economic development rationale for a public investment in Cybertran (click on letters to make them bigger):

California Assembly Member Nancy Skinner:

Pat Anderson, Mayor of Oakly, California

María Viramontes:

Congressman George Miller:

Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia:

Senator Barbara Boxer:

Cybertran's Strange Political Bedfellows

2011-09-30T11:19:00.000-07:00

Self-described "progressive" members of the Richmond, California City Council voted to spend $20,000 to lobby for a federal transportation grant for Cybertran, a PRT concept.

However, Cybertran's supporters are not all progressives.

Allen Payton is CEO, and Vice Chairman of the Board of eTranzUSA , a partner (PDF) and promoter of Cybertran. On April 27, 2010, Payton showed a video to the City Council of Brentwood, California which voted in favor of a resolution "authorizing the Mayor or designee to send a letter to the Chairperson of the U.S. House of Representatives, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in support of a funding application for CyberTran International Inc. light rail transit system" ((PDF)). Allen Payton also left comments about Cybertran on an article about Skytran and an article about PRT in Mountain View, California and another article about PRT. More comments from Payton about Cybertran on this forum.

Besides, being an enthusiastic PRTista, Allen Payton is a staunch, right-wing Republican. Lisa Vorderbrueggen at the Political Blotter in this 2008 post, recounts briefly the colorful political career of Allen Payton. Some highlights:

Payton was the man behind an anonymous hit-piece on Freitas that arrived in Antioch mailboxes just prior to the mayor’s 2004 re-election. Some pointed the finger at Davis but Payton eventually admitted that he was the author.

Payton has political baggage, too.He served on a deeply dysfunctional City Council from 1994-1998 and barely survived a 1996 recall campaign. Payton abandoned plans in 2000 to run for mayor after he was arrested in an domestic dispute involving his wife.

But regardless of his political challenges, Payton faces an even steeper uphill climb as a write-in candidate. As the title suggests, a write-in candidate must persuade voters to physically write down his or her name on the ballot. That takes a lot of motivation.

The post includes a comment from Payton "correcting" the info about the anonymous hit-piece, saying he was not the author. Payton claimed he was the fall guy for the episode.

A September 16, 1998 San Francisco Chronicle article titled "Antioch Councilman Paying Fine / $72,000 penalty stems from false business ads" has more details about Payton:

The district attorneys of Marin and Sonoma counties filed suit earlier this year in Marin County Superior Court against Payton and his wife, Donna, accusing them of making unfounded claims in flyers and radio ads about the benefits of Fatbusters, a weight-loss program that includes herbal supplements. There was no scientific basis for saying that Fatbusters can "curb your appetite" or "literally shrink and melt away the fat," prosecutors alleged.

Payton complains that the decision to fine him for false advertising was an example of over-regulation. More details about Payton's klassy style in campaigning:

Payton faces another lawsuit for flyers he sent out during the 1996 City Council campaign.

Losing candidate Michael Clement's slander suit against Payton accuses him of saying falsely that Clement shirked his taxes and once greeted police who came to his property at gunpoint. Payton says his statements were within the bounds of free speech and has asked a judge to dismiss the case.

Payton, a Republican stumped for John McCain in Florida in 2008. Payton also donated a total of $2,000 to McCain in 2007. Robert Chew, Vice President of eTranzUSA contributed a total of $6,900 to McCain in 2008.

Payton was also part of Meg Whitman's failed effort to win the 2010 gubernatorial election in California.

Like a lot of Republicans, Payton likes to say nasty stuff about gay people - one of his tweets says:

"CA Democrats advance 'lesbians-as-role models' plan http://j.mp/eLTB7t - while the state continues to face a $26 billion deficit. VETO!"

and this tweet:

The following photo below from the eTranz Facebook (link) Photo shows Allen Payton and Bob Chew sitting inside a silly Cybertran model.

Previous posts on Cybertran:

Cybertran Defined by Pod Promoters as Personal Rapid Transit

Tragic Waste of Taxpayers' Dollars on Gadgetbahn in Richmond, California

Cybertran Defined by Pod Promoters as Personal Rapid Transit

2011-09-30T08:50:00.000-07:00

This is a follow-up of the Cybertran saga I first reported last week (see "Tragic Waste of Taxpayers' Dollars on Gadgetbahn in Richmond, California"). Cybertran is being promoted by Richmond's "progressive" Mayor and city council.

While Cybertran is not strictly a PRT concept, it borrows heavily on the PRT "innovation" jargon (see 2009 Terrain article) and is a co-participant at conferences - most recently at a panel discussion about the "Future Transit" with ULTra's Steve Raney (video here of Steve Raney at this event). Steve Raney himself has worked on Cybertran - this is from Raney's curriculum vitae (PDF): and also mentioned on his Advanced Transit Association (ATRA) bio.

Steve Raney is founder of Cities21.org, a nonprofit advanced transportation & smart growth think tank. .... He designed a version of Cybertran's Group Rapid Transit train control system.

There's an article in the Podcar City Conference Newsletter #2 - August 15, 2008 (PDF) titled "Investment converges on CYBER-TRAN automated rail system". in the November 18. 2009 newsletter (PDF) Cybertran is described as a "PRT producer"

Of course, let's not forget some of the PRT producers that are emerging - Taxi2000, Skytran, RUF, Beamways, Cybertran - as all are continually active and some are receiving additional funding and resources this year; a Congratulations is in order!

Cybertran is also part of an ATRA "Technology Evaluation" titled "Personal Automated Transportation: Status and Potential of Personal Rapid Transit" (PDF) The study includes this "warning" as to the confusing inclusion of a seemingly non-prt concept in the PRT category:

Cybertran is marketing their system as a GRT system. However, for the purposes of this report, we are making the assumption that it could operate in PRT mode, in which case the vehicle would pick up only one passenger (or a group wishing to travel together) and make a non-stop trip to his or her destination. Please keep this distinction in mind if you compare the results of this report with Cybertran literature. Cybertran is built for higher speeds than would be necessary for urban PRT.

If the experts on PRT at ATRA define Cybertran as PRT, who am I to argue with them? From now on, I will refer to Cybertran as a PRT concept.

ULTra President Martin Lowson Revises History of PRT in Cardiff, Wales

2011-09-25T16:46:00.000-07:00

In a recent article about the glorified golf carts of Heathrow written by Graham Henry in the South Wales Echo, Martin Lowson, president of ULTra, formerly Advanced Transport Systems Ltd, now called ULTra Global PRT gives a bizarre answer to the question about what happened when the company failed to created a PRT system for Cardiff back in 2003:

Martin Lowson, president of ULTra Global PRT, said the scheme had fallen in Cardiff because of EU competition laws.

He said: “What actually happened was that they got funding to put the system in the Cardiff Bay area, but couldn’t find a way to procure it because of rules from the EU which said we must have competition.

That is not what happened according to the BBC:

Cardiff County Council said it was taking legal advice on the Welsh administration's decision on Friday not to give £8.8m in the coming financial year to help develop the £45m Ultra scheme.

Ministers have told the authority that they are reluctant to support the scheme - which was due to begin next year - without clear agreements on private funding.

And there was opposition:

Friends of the Earth Cymru welcomed the assembly decision, saying Cardiff council had not thought the system through properly.

There's more detail from a Jan 31 2003 article by Rhodri Clark for the The Western Mail (no longer online):

FUNDING for a futurist new transport system has been frozen just a fortnight after it began trials.

Last year the National Assembly announced grants which could exceed £15m for the Ultra system of driverless passenger pods.

The system was to have started carrying passengers at Cardiff Bay in 2005, with the elevated track later being extended into the city centre. Yesterday, however, Transport Minister Sue Essex said the grant for Ultra was being withheld because of uncertainty over its finance.

Transport managers welcomed the decision, saying the priorities for the Assembly's limited budget were proven transport systems.

Unveiling a package of transport grants for Wales, Ms Essex admitted she was disappointed that most of the money announced last year for public transport was not spent.

She promised that the Assembly would continue with rail investments, including money for the Vale of Glamorgan line, despite suggestions from London that up to 35% of services may be cut.

Much of the new money announced yesterday will go on better bus services and facilities for walkers and cyclists. Construction will start on part of the Ammanford distributor road and on the Lly peninsula "Butlin's bypass".

Asked about funding for Ultra, Ms Essex said, "We've held off on the Ultra at the moment.

"There hasn't been a guaranteed private-sector partner coming in. At the moment there isn't a guarantee that that's going to go through."

The scheme is projected to cost £45m, about £30m of which needs to be financed privately. Its promoters say it will not need an operating subsidy.

Ms Essex said the Assembly was keen to support innovation and it was the financial rather than technical aspects which had caused the rethink.

Even the initial loop between the Assembly building and Cardiff County Council's headquarters has been shelved.

"We couldn't do the initial loop unless we had the guarantee that the second stage is going to be forthcoming to link in at the station [Cardiff Central]," said Ms Essex.

The Confederation of Passenger Transport Wales, which represents bus and coach operators, said Ultra had been allocated "a hell of a lot of money". Director John Pockett said, "There's only a limited amount of money going into transport, but this unproven scheme seemed to be taking priority over modes of transport which are proven to provide good solutions. We voiced our concerns about Ultra at our last meeting with the minister. We welcome the fact that she is rethinking the scheme.

Mr.Lowson doesn't explain why ULTra said it was prepared to build a PRT system in Cardiff back in 2003, but was unable to deliver a working model, albeit a stripped down version with no free-standing stations at Heathrow on until this summer. If they were ready to go in 2003, what was the reason for all the delays?

In other ULTra news, it appears ULTra is downplaying expectations on their much-hyped "pod revolution" in an Air Rail News interview with ULTra's John Hammersley. Here's his response to a question about the future of the pods at Heathrow:

The decision on that rests with BAA, they have always said that first they want to see the system in place before making any extensive plans for the future, and to see how the passengers will respond.... At the moment we’re in the process of going from the launch of the pilot through the assessment of it and then, hopefully, into extension further, if that is the decision taken by BAA.

And finally some honesty about whether ULTra's pods could be a feasible urban transit mode:

Originally the Ultra system was designed to meet the needs of the 21st century city as an urban transport mode. The pods can help free up the roads and congestion and is a good option for the so-called "last mile" journey. Having a PRT network in the city enables the increase of other forms of public transport. However cities are very complicated environments with many authorities and owners of the land, whilst airports or campus environment generally has one major stakeholder.

Exactly, a little something called "right of way" which the PRTistas treat with the same lack of reality they treat everything else having to do with transportation and urban design.

Tragic Waste of Taxpayers' Dollars on Gadgetbahn in Richmond, California

2011-09-24T08:34:00.000-07:00

The PRT hucksters claim their concepts are "faster, cheaper, better" than reality-based transit modes such as LRT, streetcars or buses. In these tough times, with less dollars in their budgets, cities are more vulnerable to that con-job.

The latest suckers to fall for the gadgetbahn flim-flam is Richmond, California:

The City Council will spend $20,000 to lobby for a federal transportation grant to help light-rail company CyberTran develop 13 ultralight rail stations throughout the city — a transit system, in the words of city leaders and CyberTran’s CEO, that would be clean, efficient, and create 20,000 jobs in the next decade.

And where is the $$$ going?

Ritterman went to Washington D.C. with CyberTran’s team this July to lobby for the federal transportation funding. The $20,000 approved by the city Tuesday will go to the law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, which will seek infrastructure funding from the Federal Transit Administration’s Surface Transportation Program.

Cybertran is an infeasible "gadgetbahn" concept. I was interviewed about Cybertran back in 2007 when they attempted to flim-flam Alameda:

The driverless system, using ultra light rail cars would operate on regular routes, but also be capable of delivering passengers directly from their origin to their destination. Dubbed Personal Rapid Transit or PRT, critics say these systems require complicated computer controlled switching, extensive elevated stations and tracks that wildly raise costs and create visual blight.

Ken Avidor, a Minnesota transit advocate and critic of similarly proposed systems, called the project the latest iteration of "gadgetbahn," a play on "autobahn" the German word for freeway. Gadgetbahn refers to highly technological transport systems relying on untried innovations. "All of these gadgetbahn projects always rely on totally unrealistic cost estimates," he said. "A lot of the public officials today are baby boomers. They saw the Jetsons. And it has a lot of appeal," Avidor said. After rattling off a list of failed proposals, including one where proponents claimed to keep costs low by having elevated structures built by machine, Avidor accused PRT supporters of wowing people with technology to block realistic alternatives. "It's a stalking horse for people who don't want light rail," he said

While the Cybertran prototype doesn't look like the typical PRT pod, its promoters use the same PRT lingo:

CyberTran ultralight rail uses small cars carrying 20 passengers. (The same-sized cars could be configured to hold anywhere from six to 30 riders.) Small, light cars run on cheaper tracks. The total capital cost of a CyberTran urban system (including rail and guideways) is about a tenth or less the cost per passenger mile of conventional light rail[2]. That is important -- capital costs dominate rail expenses.

According to this web page on Professor Schneider's gadgetbahn site, Cybertran was used to wangle a chunk of taxpayers' $$$ in New York nearly ten years ago:

By providing a relatively high quality, high speed service, we should be able to attract a relatively large ridership which combined with our low costs will result in unprecedented cost recovery ratios and possibly significant profits.

And finally, I would like to take this opportunity to announce a significant breakthrough in the development of the CyberTran system. The State of New York has recently awarded CyberTran with a grant of $350,000 to perform a feasibility analysis for a demonstration system linking the seat of the NYS government - the Empire State Plaza with the Rensselaer AMTRAK station located approximately 1.25 miles away across the Hudson River. The feasibility study is projected to be followed by the allocation of $4M for a low speed test facility which in turn will be followed by the $30M demonstration project.

So, what happened to that N.Y. Cybertran study?

UPDATE: Found the following mention of it in this article and this article from 2002:

UPDATE 2: The fate of Cybertran in NY:

UPDATE 2: "The latest offering, a relatively affordable $30 million link between the Rensselaer train station and Empire State Plaza - known as CyberTran - died a quiet death in 2004 for want of federal funding."

But not before lobbyists got a chunk of the $$$.

ULTra's Glorified Golf Carts at Heathrow Not "Faster, Better, Cheaper"

2011-09-17T18:55:00.000-07:00

For many years, I've had to listen to the PRTistas claim Personal Rapid Transit was "faster, better cheaper" compared to conventional modes of transit. The so-called Heathrow PRT project was supposed to be the proof of those claims... and it has failed miserably.

After many years, delays and enormous piles of hype, the pods of Heathrow are now "officially unveiled"(Reuters):

Traveling at speeds up to 40 km/hour (25 mph), after an average wait of just 34 seconds, the system looks like something straight from a science fiction film.

25 mph? Not exactly "rapid". And the 34 second wait? That pretty much dooms their oft-repeated claim that you never have to wait for PRT. Also, a 34 second wait eliminates the possibility that PRT could operate at "nano-second headways" in order to match the capacity of conventional transit. With those pathetic stats, the ULTra pods cannot be seriously considered a viable transit mode for urban areas.

According to ULTra, the company behind the technology, the 30 million pound ($47 million) development could transport up to 500,000 passengers each year and replace 50,000 shuttle bus journeys.

First of all, ULTra is not the first company to debut a fleet of unmanned peoplemovers in an airport parking lot. That was first accomplished by FROG/2getthere at Schiphol Airport 3 years before the turn of the last century. Frog/2getthere provided platforms including the guidance technology to ATS in 2001.

ULTra is essentially FROG/2getthere with its dorky wheels covered up to give it a futuristic look:

And even with their awesome automated "CyberCabs" FROG/2getthere went bankrupt in 2007.

The cost of the Heathrow pod project proves that the infrastructure is expensive to build. There are no real-life figures on what it will cost to operate and maintain the pods of Heathrow for a year. There is a control room and presumably people who have to monitor the pods. How much that all costs - 3 or 4 million dollars a year for a simple two mile stretch, it's certainly not "cheaper" than taxis or jitneys. With deep pockets, BAA will likely continue to fund the pods until the flimsy fleet of battery-powered pods need to be replaced. It cannot be claimed as presidential candidate Michele Bachmann stated in 2004 that PRT could possibly "pay for itself".

It could be argued that the Heathrow pod "system" is not a true PRT system at all. It has a heavy "bi-directional guideway" that would not fit on the average city street. The Heathrow pod system do not have the elevated stations that are pictured in countless visuals on the web- for example, the enormous, hideous station festooned with advertisements on this webpage. The Heathrow pods have rubber tires and do not circulate like taxis, but instead must be berthed separately so they can charge their batteries. The pods must also back out of their berths - requiring plenty of room.

The glorified golf carts of Heathrow only prove that Professor Vukan Vuchic was right all along about PRT:

The PRT concept is imagined to capture the advantages of personal service by private car with the high efficiency of rapid transit. Actually, the PRT concept combines two mutually incompatible elements of these two systems: very small vehicles with complicated guideways and stations. Thus, in central cities, where heavy travel volumes could justify investment in guideways, vehicles would be far too small to meet the demand. In suburbs, where small vehicles would be ideal, the extensive infrastructure would be economically unfeasible and environmentally unacceptable.

The PRT concept is thus a totally unrealistic "Buck Rogers" concept for which there are no applications where it would be operated efficiently and economically.

Not "faster, not cheaper, not better"... just a lot of hype.

More About ULTra: ULTra President Martin Lowson Revises History of PRT in Cardiff, Wales.

Another FAIL for Personal Rapid Transit - SW Corridor LRT Approved by FTA

2011-09-02T18:27:00.000-07:00

The Strib:

The Federal Transit Administration said Friday that it has approved preliminary engineering work on a new light-rail line that, if built, would become the third in the Twin Cities.

The 15-mile Southwest Corridor line would connect downtown Minneapolis and Eden Prairie. If the project continues to clear FTA hurdles and wins federal funding, construction would begin in 2014, with an aim of making the rail line operational by 2017 or 2018.

I remember when the PRT hucksters proposed their idiotic pod concept for the SW Corridor - how many chances do these crackpots and con artists get?

Here's the page that used to be on a PDF available on the SW corridor website (click to make it bigger):

Read about recent Personal Rapid Transit flops and fiascos HERE.

PRT Hucksters Crank Up the Hype on Heathrow Pods

2011-08-25T11:50:00.000-07:00

After a loooong wait and several delayed launches, the glorified golf carts at Heathrow are getting evaluated by... Twitter?

We'll it's not exactly "pod fever". And not all tweets are happy tweets:

Heathrow's ULTra Pods apparently have a 5% Failure Rate.

After many attempts over the years and hundreds of millions of dollars spent on studies, research and development, there are no true PRT systems in operation anywhere in the world. The pod project at Heathrow is supposed to be PRT, but it lacks the essential features of a true PRT system - multiple offline, elevated stations, lightweight pods and a slim, one-way guideway.

There really isn't much difference between the ULTra pod project at Heathrow and a nearly identical project in 1997 at Schiphol Airport. So what's the big deal?

Here's a 2002 video of automated pods in action:

Read about recent Personal Rapid Transit flops and fiascos HERE.

Talking Points Memo Falls for Personal Rapid Transit Hype

2011-08-21T12:33:00.000-07:00

Sad to see a great website like Talking Points Memo publish a poorly-researched puff piece about the glorified golf carts of Heathrow. And Josh Marshall, usually a sensible, smart guy embarassed himself by tweeting:

Forget Michele Bachmann sponsored legislation for Personal Rapid Transit boondoggle.

Forget that the debut of the ULTra pods at Heathrow was delayed a bunch of times.

Forget that the crummy pod car design that ULTra is based on had an almost identical debut in 1997 at Schiphol Airport.

Forget that ULTra has all kinds of bogus stuff on their website like these goofy plans for PRT projects in Minnesota.

Forget that the Heathrow pods have a 5% failure rate.

Nevermind that Heathrow pod ride is so bouncy and shaky, you will get seasick watching this video:

There's another video of a bumpy pod ride on this blog.

Nope, Josh Marshall says the pods are awesome.

Many years ago, I put something on my website called "THE MEDIA PRT TECHNO-PUFFERY HALL OF SHAME". But I could not keep up with the constant flood of PRT hype. This is what I wrote seven years ago:

The PRT publicity mill grinds out happy stories about PRT and the news media publishes them with little or no fact checking. The media likes to publish "Gee whiz" techno-puffery and for the most part, stories about rocket jet-packs and personal hovercraft don't do a lot of harm. PRT cleverly sneaks under the radar as a "Gee Whiz" story...but, of course there's a serious side to PRT . When PRT is revealed to be something that can cost taxpayers and investors a lot of money, the media just stops reporting ...I suspect out of embarrassment. Nobody wants to admit they were snookered, especially editors and publishers. All those hyped stories about PRT also create a false impression of PRT...and of course this creates a closed loop of information leading to even more cyber-hype and media techno-puffery.

Remember the embarrassing puff piece Salon did in 2004? Here's a Mark Olson explaining why PRT never goes anywhere in Minnesota:

Olson, who has been heading a PRT public relations campaign in Minnesota to drum up support, says public skepticism about new technologies is a big hurdle, as are established government relationships with existing transit manufacturers. "You have 40-plus years of relationship between our legislators and bureaucracies, and a flow of money between them," he says. "We're basically recreating the battle between horse-and-buggy manufacturers and the creators of the automobile."

Mark Olson was voted out of office after he was arrested and convicted of spousal abuse and is now a lobbyist for a PRT vendor with a $100 million project for Coon Rapids.

The Salon article provoked a lot of emails like this one:

Your article about Personal Rapid Transit was lacking in both context and perspective. The data on rail passenger-mile efficiency are not "skewed" by the success of the New York City subway or by scheduling that takes into account ridership patterns.

Further, the quote from Rep. Mark Olson does not even mention the battle in Minnesota over the highly politicized new (electric) light-rail line in Minneapolis. PRT has long been offered as an alternative to light rail in the Twin Cities by out-state Republicans who are against rail and in favor of more highways. This may be because PRT is currently in use exactly nowhere, and Minnesota Republicans expect and hope the status quo will continue in that respect.

Finally, your writer was evidently unable to find anyone who disagrees with the businesspeople/cheerleaders quoted in this piece. It's hard to believe that nobody has a question about PRT. Transit is a vitally important issue, but one-sided articles serve only to hinder informed discussion.

Maybe TPM will follow-up their PRT puff-piece with some of the well-researched muckraking TPM does best.

Read about recent Personal Rapid Transit flops and fiascos HERE.

Personal Rapid Transit Flops and Fiascos

2011-08-21T06:20:00.000-07:00

Recent pod news and info

Hilarious Personal Rapid Transit Presentation by ATRA & CPRT (Same Person)

Is MNDOT Scrubbing Personal Rapid Transit Off its Website?

Heathrow's ULTra Personal Rapid Transit Pods Have 5% Failure Rate and are apparently being evaluated by Twitter.

Would-Be PRT Vendor "Preparing a Citizen Suit" Against the State of Minnesota

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Hilarious Personal Rapid Transit Presentation by ATRA & CPRT (Same Person)

2011-08-18T13:58:00.001-07:00

Video from this event:

Building Communities Exhibition: Visuals and Models of the New Urban Community

Aug 15 2011 11:00 am

This annual week-long, public event will be held August 15 - 19 in the Crystal Court of the IDS Center, in Downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Building Community Exhibition offers a sneak peek at the future of our urban communities. There will be scale models, renderings, computer animations and multi-media displays of planned, ongoing, and recently completed construction projects that are shaping our urban communities. The Advanced Transit Association is teaming up with Citizens for Personal Rapid Transiti (www.cprt.org) for this exhibition. On Thursday, August 18 the Building Communities Exhibition is hosting "Transportation Day." This day features a noontime speaker session, where an ATRA representative will give a presentation along side other predominant transportation policy-makers.

The antediluvian Sky Loop model is from the defunct Sky Loop PRT project.

UPDATE: The Sky Loop model is included in this Cincinnati Revisited blog post. The caption reads:

And finally, of course, we can't forget about the most notorious transportation proposal which was actually considered by for our regional transportation initiative (OKI), the Skyloop - a monorail-like personal rapid transit system.

Read about the Sky Loop PRT fiasco HERE. Click on the picture to make it bigger:

Here's the video:

Speaking of ATRA, the PRTistas are fighting over the definition of PRT:

Christer Lindstrom, who is presenting the latest podcar conference at Stockholm tells me that the article which 'redefined' PRT characteristics was originally drafted by Steve Raney, who to my knowledge works & represents your interests in the US - therefore this mail addressed to you directly. Christer has 'assumed' that the article has been officially endorsed by ATRA, when it is apparent that it has never been. This is perhaps a shortsighted, illegal and unethical act on the part of Steve to wrongly portray the family of 4 seat systems as the only PRT candidates perhaps to establish some business advantages for Ultra, Vectus & 2getthere in the near future with many city officials - as non-discerning audiences - by way of a deceptive ATRA endorsement, when none of this was required in the first place.

Unethical? Deceptive? Nawwwwwww.....

Recent Pod Flops and Fiascos:

Is MNDOT Scrubbing Personal Rapid Transit Off its Website?

Heathrow's ULTra Personal Rapid Transit Pods Have 5% Failure Rate

Would-Be PRT Vendor "Preparing a Citizen Suit" Against the State of Minnesota

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Is MNDOT Scrubbing Personal Rapid Transit Off its Website?

2011-08-16T15:11:00.000-07:00

The Personal Rapid Transit page on MnDOT's website is now the Automated Rapid Transit page.

This was then (click to make bigger):

This is now:

Recent Pod Flops and Fiascos:

Would-Be PRT Vendor "Preparing a Citizen Suit" Against the State of Minnesota

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Heathrow's ULTra Personal Rapid Transit Pods Have 5% Failure Rate

2011-08-12T06:22:00.000-07:00

Once touted by supporters as "faster, better cheaper" than conventional transit, The much-hyped ULTra Personal Rapid Transit experimental operation at Heathrow's T5 terminal parking facility is described as a "taxi" service that fails one in twenty passengers according to Airport International's News:

Each pod is capable of accommodating four passengers plus their luggage and, at present, they're used by something like 800 passengers on a daily basis. The speed of these airport robot pods peaks at about 25 miles per hour and, since the fleet became operational, they've shown themselves to be pretty reliable, with a five per cent failure rate.

The article doesn't explain what "failure" means.

Keep in mind, the trial period began April 18, 2011. The ULTra pods have not been tested in extreme winter conditions. J.E. Anderson doubted ULTra 's ability to handle wintery conditions in 2004 (Salon):

Edward Anderson, however, quibbles with Lowson's assessment of superiority, pointing out the ULTra's larger cars would cost more and add weight to the tracks, and that the electric-car system is more vulnerable to inclement weather.

According to the ULTra website, snow removal is accomplished by a "special snow and ice removal vehicle". This is how the special vehicle removes snow and ice:

This vehicle traverses the guideway automatically, applying a de-icing spray

Ethylene Glycol? not very environmental.

The ULTra site also mentions an "open glass reinforced plastic (GRP) grating" that they hope will allow snow, ice and the de-icing fluid to rain down onto pedestrians, autos and other property below.

And how reliable are the ULTra pod's batteries in Minnesota's sub-freezing temperatures?

Faster, better, cheaper? I don't think so.

Recent Pod Flops and Fiascos:

Would-Be PRT Vendor "Preparing a Citizen Suit" Against the State of Minnesota

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Would-Be PRT Vendor "Preparing a Citizen Suit" Against the State of Minnesota

2011-08-07T19:05:00.000-07:00

Pod promoter Steve Raney posted this email on the Transport Innovators forum to Tom Sorel, Transportation Commissioner for the State of MInnesota:

Hi Tom

We have refined the summary of the 28th Amendment as a basis to end government monopolies over power and transportation infrastructures. We are preparing a citizen suit in which we will name you and the State of Minnesota for blocking privately financed solar-powered mobility networks. It would be much better if Minnesota will allow such networks.

Unless you have some means to guaranteeing access to affordable gasoline, as noted in the summary of the 28th Amendment, the decay of the oil-powered economy seems likely to kill about 8 in 10 Americans over the next 20 years. Geology is slow and relentless. We can preempt the crisis by becoming self-reliant and ending our oil addiction.

Please consider that if people die, the civil aspects of the citizens suit should be expanded to criminal accountability. People are already losing their homes because DOT mandates oil as the lifeblood of our economy.

Thanks
Bill James

Steve Raney comments:

The large CC line maximizes the number of client-side Minnesotans that are antagonized. I am not aware of an example of this bizdev approach
succeeding.

Here's the CC list:

rom: Bill James [mailto:bill.ja...@jitcorp.com]
Sent: Sunday, August 07, 2011 3:11 PM
To: Sorel, Thomas (MnDOT) Cc: Feit, Dennis (DOT); Ariene McCarthy (Met Council); Arseneau, Bernie (DOT); David Pesch (Olmsted County); Eric Sorensen (Winona); Ferrol Robinson (UMn); Gina Baas (UMn); Paulson, Greg (DOT); Meyer,
Jean M (DOT); Jeff Ellerbusch (Olmsted County); John Levin (Met Council); Karl Keel (Bloomington); Buckeye, Kenneth (DOT); Gutknecht, Kevin (DOT); Hernandez, Kristine J (DOT); Laurie McGinnis (UMn); Marisol Simon (DOT); Schweyen, Michael (DOT); Michael Sheehan (Olmsted); Schadauer, Michael (DOT); Thakur, Mukhtar (DOT); Succio, Nelrae (DOT); Representative Tina Liebling; Senator Gen Olson; Stephanie Malinoff (UMn); Henkel, Tim (DOT); Tony Knauer (Rochester); Venkat.Pindiprolu - FTA;

Bill James is the JPODS guy. Listen to Bill James talk about JPODS :

More about Bill James in these posts:

Video: Bill James Pitches Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) Resolution to Hennepin County

No PRT at the Mall of America

Farcical Hearing for JPOD Proposal in Hull, Mass.

Personal Rapid Transit Consultant Wants President Obama to Lose the Next Election

2011-08-06T09:29:00.000-07:00

Roy Reynolds of PRT Strategies on the Transport Innovators forum:

"Hopefully, with a new administration in 2013, more sensibility will prevail and we'll all have our opportunities. "

There are two PRT-supporting presidential candidates in the running for the GOP nomination, Michele Bachmann and Tim Pawlenty.

Phoenix Woman has a good post on the pod people at FDL.

I'm guessing there's going to be an uptick in the amount of PRT promotion and publicity in the run-up to the next session of the Minnesota Legislature. Look for one or more PRT pork projects to be included in the bonding bill. Here's a Minneapolis pod event planned for this month:

Start: Aug 15 2011 11:00 am

This annual week-long, public event will be held August 15 - 19 in the Crystal Court of the IDS Center, in Downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Building Community Exhibition offers a sneak peek at the future of our urban communities. There will be scale models, renderings, computer animations and multi-media displays of planned, ongoing, and recently completed construction projects that are shaping our urban communities. The Advanced Transit Association is teaming up with Citizens for Personal Rapid Transiti (www.cprt.org) for this exhibition. On Thursday, August 18 the Building Communities Exhibition is hosting "Transportation Day." This day features a noontime speaker session, where an ATRA representative will give a presentation along side other predominant transportation policy-makers.

Will PRT lobbyist Mark Olson, CPRT member Dean Zimmermann be there to answer questions?

Recent Pod Flops and Fiascos:

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Heathrow PRT Twitter FAIL

2011-06-23T16:54:00.000-07:00

After years and years of testing, delays and incredible heaps of hype, the Heathrow personal rapid transit "ULTra" pods are... still testing. Peter "PRT Guru" Muller breathlessly blogs the twitterific success of the glorified golf carts of T5:

Heathrow Personal Rapid Transit System – Unsolicited Tweets/Quotes

He has 9 tweets, four of which end in exclamation points, one tweet has two exclamation points.

Here are a few tweets about the Heathrow pods PRT Guru didn't post:

Andrew Frankel:

Thought BAA couldn't try harder to piss off its customers? The Heathrow Pod proves otherwise. Actually worse than useless this am. Pls RT

Rowley Douglas:

Sitting in a heathrow T5 pod transporter from parking lot - nice idea but walking would have been quicker!

UPDATE: Another thumbs down..

Thanks @HeathrowAirport for the pre-flight sauna. Also known as the Heathrow pod to T5!!

So much for the great PRT transportation revolution ....

Round-Up of Pod Flops and Fiascos:

Will Reporters Ask Michele Bachmann Whether She Still Thinks Personal Rapid Transit is a Good Idea?

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Will Reporters Ask Michele Bachmann Whether She Still Thinks Personal Rapid Transit is a Good Idea?

2011-06-19T18:15:00.000-07:00

I started blogging about then- Minnesota Senator Michele Bachmann seven years ago because of Bachmann's horrible record on transportation which included her support for Personal Rapid Transit (PRT), a crazy 50-year-old, pod-monorail-like concept that has sucked down hundreds of millions of public and private dollars for nothing. Bachman was joined in this effort by two of Minnesota's worst politicians - Mark Olson and Dean Zimmermann, both still pushing the pods.

Recently, the Duluth News Tribune reported that the pod hucksters have returned to Duluth:

Remember Taxi 2000 Corp. — the outfit that pitched building a monorail-type transit project in Duluth seven years ago?

That project fizzled when the city lost its bid to nab $24 million in state bonding money to jump-start the personal rapid transit, or PRT, system. But talk of bringing Taxi 2000 to town is back, thanks to Sandy Hoff and Alessandro Giuliani, two would-be developers of the former Lafarge site.

Giuliani and Hoff said they have been in discussions with Taxi 2000 recently about how Duluth could become the first community in the nation to demonstrate how the Fridley, Minn.-based company’s Skyweb Express system would work in the field.

Bachmann's pal Edwin Cain is the lobbyist for Taxi 2000 (Cain also lobbied for fraudster "Bobby Thompson"). The article has quotes from Michael Setty who wrote an excellent white paper about PRT in Winona. Taxi 2000 was the would-be pod vendor Michele Bachmann was talking about when she told MPR back in 2004:

Supporters range from Minneapolis City Council member Dean Zimmerman, a Green Party member, to Republican Sen. Michelle Bachmann of Stillwater. Bachmann says personal rapid transit, like many political issues, creates strange bedfellows.

"People on the right, people on the left, we have the common goal of moving people with transit, but doing it in the most cost-effective manner, in fact, in a manner that may end up costing no government subsidy, it may end up paying for itself," she says.

Reporters never bothered to ask Bachmann exactly HOW PRT could pay for itself. The media never bothered to ask questions like that. Reporters rarely mention the long and sorry history of PRT flops and fiascos. And so, the PRT boondoggle goes on and on to waste time and money. How many chances do these PRT guys get? As far as Tim Pawlenty was concerned, they get as many chances as the taxpayers will give them. MnDOT's workshop for the pods August 18th, 2010 was a big fiasco that included disgraced, former Mpls councilman Dean Zimmermann.

Of course, if Taxi 2000's grab last year for a taxpayer subsidy is any guide, this Duluth project will likely include a request for local bonding or other government pork subsidy ... and there are other pod projects that may get into the House Omnibus Transportation bill next session as they did in 2004.

Republicans like Phil Krinkie and and former gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer voted for one of Rep. Mark Olson's pod amendments (voted down 26 to 107 on April 12, 2006). Which probably explains why the Taxpayers League refuses to take a position on public funding of the pod boondoggle. There is little to zero support for public funding of PRT among DFL legislators and Governor Dayton does not support public funding of PRT. Transit for Livable Communities and the Sierra Club North Star oppose public funding for PRT.

Reporters need to ask candidate Bachmann if she will support PRT if she becomes President.

Recent Pod Flops and Fiascos:

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

(Cross-posted at Dump Bachmann)

The Guardian Pans Masdar's pods

2011-05-10T20:48:00.000-07:00

Guardian UK:

Getting to the showcase streets of the new institute is an unusual experience. Arriving by road from Abu Dhabi – there will be a train in years to come – you swap your car for a ride in a Personal Rapid Transit pod, an experience that combines the cartoon aesthetic of The Jetsons with the comedy of Jacques Tati's Mon Oncle, the 1958 French satire that lampoons the excesses of an overdesigned futuristic world.

The driverless sci-fi pods bumble around the undercrofts of the first phase of Masdar City and it is a wonder that none of them bump into each other. But they move so slowly it may well be quicker to walk. The original idea was for these comic pods to criss-cross the entire city underground so that residents, commuters and visitors could reach any part of it without having to drive, and in the welcome shade. There would have been hundreds of pods. In the event, they have been seen as an all too complex way of getting about. Future phases of Masdar will be pod-free, although cars and lorries will be directed underground, leaving the streets above for pedestrians only.

Read more ridiculous stuff about PRT on THE PREVIOUS POST.

CPRT Board Member: Football Legend Carl Eller Hoping to Start Development in South Mpls That Will Use PRT

2011-05-10T13:11:00.000-07:00

Citizens for Personal Rapid Transit (CPRT) board member Dick Gronning lets the cat out of the bag at the Transport Innovators forum:

Around 2:00 PM an enormous person showed up and started talking to us. He stated that he was very interested in PRT. He knew quite a bit about PRT already. He stated that he was hoping to start a development S. of down town Mpls and use PRT. He said that his name was Carl and he represented a group of investors. I looked at him (Particularly his size) and asked, "Are you Carl Eller of the Vikings?" He laughed and said, "Yes I am!" He is president of the Retired Players Association.

Holy cow! Carl Eller wants to build a development with PRT pods in it?!? This is like the most awesomist PRT news since that Texas astronaut/video game mogul said he was going to launch a PRT system in Austin.

It's also possible that Gronning is not being entirely factual. Gronning is in error when, in another post he reports the following about me:

Ken showed up at the CPRT table that we had for the U.M CTS career day and wrote up what was actually a respectable account. He didn't visit us this year at Living Green. Maybe he too is changing...

Wrong, I wasn't there. the photos I posted March 2, 2011 were sent to me by a student. And no, I'm not changing; I still say PRT is a hoax and a scam promoted by con-artists, criminals and crackpots.

Gronning's comment about me is in response to the ever-klassy inventor of Skytrak Jack Slade:

Did Ken Avidor show up, or have a table? Or maybe he was visiting his Mother at the Chicken Ranch for Mother's Day.

The most hilarious comment is reserved for last from Seattle PRTista David Gow ("Mr_Grant"):

I hope you guys have stopped using the placard that mentions You don't ride with strangers, or words to that effect. So easy to misconstrue.

"Misconstrue"?

Sorry, Mr. Gow/Grant, but the PRT hucksters aint going to give up the fear-mongering about "strangers" on buses and trains . It's the argument that most appeals to their target audience - white suburbanites who are afraid to ride the bus or LRT with people who look like Carl Eller.

Here's a photo I took last month at the Sustainable Communities Conference of that CPRT display that bothers Mr. Gow/Grant so much (click to make larger):

More PRT news:

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

ULTra's Poison Pod Pill for High Speed Rail

2011-05-07T09:41:00.000-07:00

Even as they struggle to launch their much-ballyhooed, much-postponed launch at Heathrow, the ULTra PRT hucksters keep adding more ridiculous CGI videos to gazillions of PRT videos already on You Tube. But, instead of trashing rail transit like this PRT video titled "Phoenix light rail is Trash!", this video pretends to love rail transit:

High-speed rail has become an increasingly attractive form of transit, offering inter-city travel that is faster, more convenient, and more environmentally friendly than driving or flying. But how do you get to the high speed rail station?

ULTra sustainable personal transit can increase the popularity of each high speed rail station, without requiring expensive parking structures. By connecting to high-speed rail, ULTra can increase the area that is served, boosting rail ridership, and making for a more economically viable system. ULTra PRT takes high speed rail to the next level. For more info: http://www.ultraprt.com

The pod people like to argue that PRT is a "last mile solution" for passengers. They argue that Americans will not take LRT or HSR because they need a pod to take them from the station to their final destination.

Except that there isn't any "last mile problem". Passengers take the bus, bike, tram, cab, walk etc.

The PRT "solution" is just a poison pill to make rail transit look too expensive and too complicated.

As usual, the PRT guys offer distraction and misinformation to confuse public officials and citizens about reality-based transit.

More PRT news:

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO,

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Ian Bicking Promoting New/Old Pods Again

2011-05-06T21:29:00.000-07:00

Ian Bicking is promoting pods at Minnebar:

Personal Rapid Transit is new idea for public transit that is not mass transit. This concept has in the past seen development here in Minnesota, though the idea is now coming to fruition abroad, most notably with the ULTra project at Heathrow airport.

Uh, the launch of the glorified golf carts at Heathrow has been postponed more times than anyone cares to remember.

....The PRT concept originated in the 60s...

Wait, Ian you started off saying PRT was a "new idea". PRT is a really OLD idea.

....and by now technology has more than caught up, though many questions remain, especially about construction costs, politics, safety, research, etc.

Yeah, a lot of questions, like how the heck can you get approval to build two-story PRT monorail structures on streets with a clear view into people's bedroom.

I am not involved with any PRT technology, but I have found it interesting and have followed its progress, and it has several features that I think will make sense particularly to a technical audience. This presentation will describe PRT and compare it with traditional transit options. PRT has traditionally been the source of a controversy (even derision) in transit circles, and though I'll be presenting a largely pro-PRT viewpoint I will encourage the audience to challenge that viewpoint at any time. No, wait... this is BarCamp, there is no "audience"! I mean my fellow presenters who just happen to be sitting across from me.

Okay, presenters here's some recent news about the ongoing PRT fiasco, ask Ian about some of them:

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO,

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Should Cities Give PRT Companies Right-of-Way?

2011-04-30T12:04:00.000-07:00

PRT promoters will tell you something like this:

"We don't want any taxpayer money to build our Personal Rapid Transit system... just give us the rights-of-way."

Sounds good, right? Conventional transit is costly to build and maintain... and at a time when governments at all levels are cutting budgets. ... and these nice PRT fellows are offering a much-needed public transit system... for free!

Caution; Any city that gives their right-of-way to the PRT hucksters could be taken to the cleaners.

Here's how;

Once the PRT company is granted the right-of-way, they could turn around and sue the city/state. Why? The PRT company will be in a position to claim they are unable to raise capital to build the pod system because existing transit is subsidized and is therefore unfair competition.

The court could then order the city/state to cease subsidizing its existing transit or agree to pay damages to the pod company and buy back the right-of-way.

Farfetched?

Consider H.F. No. 1366, one of several PRT bills then-Representative, now-pod lobbyist Mark Olson introduced in the MN Legislature in 2004/5 that would establish a commission that would "regulate "transit to provide transit service "exclusive of direct competition from any publicly subsidized transit services". In other words, a commission that would allow only transit that could pay for itself out of the farebox. And since public transit could not be affordable for many riders unless fares were subsidized, it would effectively dismantle existing public transit systems and could prevent planning for future transit expansion.

So the next time a pod huckster tells you he only wants your right of way, hold on to your wallet and count your rings.

More news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Petulant PRT promoters acting up again.

Skytran in Detroit? Meet Skytran CEO,

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

The PRT "Industry" Caught Behaving Badly (Yet Again) Insults and Ballot Stuffing

2011-04-30T10:16:00.000-07:00

Eric Britton has a some thoughtful posts, a poll and a polite discussion going over at World Streets (here, here and here)

The post with the poll attracted the attention of the handful of PRT aficionados at the Google Transport Innovators forum. Here are selections from the discussion thread titled "Plea to vote for Delhi PRT"...

Peter "PRT Guru" Muller" posted an email he apparently received from Sonal Ahuja, an employee of Capita Symonds which according to the PRT Visions blog is working on PRT for India:

Dear Friends,

Please don't forget to cast your vote and ask your friends to cast one in support of PRT here. It seems to be a biased discussion here and PRT will need your support.

http://worldstreets.wordpress.com/2011/04/27/prt-proposal-for-delhi-c...

with warm regards

Sonal Ahuja
Director International Development,
CAPITA SYMONDS
Technology Transport and Infrastructure
Level 7, 52 Grosvenor Gardens, Belgravia,
London, SW1W 0AU,
United Kingdom
Tel: -----
India Mob: ----
UAE ----

ULTra PRT employee Steve Raney weighed in:

Eric Britton, the Worldstreets survey author, is a green transportation advocate and a fan of a select few advanced
technologies. I find him intellectually rigid when it comes to PRT. I would discredit any attempt by Britton to conduct a fair survey. And I think it is fundamentally a BS idea to survey about a PRT application backed by a detailed study using a few teeny bits of explanation written by an anti-PRT guy. Britton isn't interested in any detailed study that picks PRT as the favored alternative. On the Sustrans yahoo group, it was Britton who posted Ken Avidor stuff. That's further discrediting in my book. I'd rather watch Judge Judy, where I can experience a much higher level of discourse.

Jack Slade, the tactless inventor of Skytrek unloads on Eric:

I thought the request originated with Peter Muller. Eric is not part of the transportation solution, he is part of the problem. He hasn't a clue what should be done, if it is more complicated than a bicycle, and ridicules everything that his little brain cannot cope with.

Britton has taken note of these comments:

It is always interesting to have people’s unvarnished views on your work and ethics. Here are a few by some people who felt that I was being unfair to PRT and Pods

Indeed.

I am amused that Steve Raney continues to attack my credibility and suggesting that people who merely quote me can suffer a loss of credibility. Steve Raney, of course was forced to remove an entire page from the ULTra website that attempted to discredit me and other critics who merely mention the fact that ULTra has repeatedly failed to launch their much ballyhooed Heathrow pods (something Raney himself has acknowledged). Geez, BAA Heathrow still has this on their website:

"PRT offers a completely new form of public transport - one that will deliver a fast, efficient service to passengers and bring considerable environmental benefits, saving more than half of the energy used by existing forms of public or private transport. Not only that, it's a world first and we are very much looking forward to launching this to passengers in 2009."

Really! 2009?

As usual, instead responding to criticism by being honest and transparent, PRT promoters react to criticism and bad news by shooting the messenger.

(click to make larger)

UPDATE: Eric Britton has given his verdict:

This has been good fun, but Brendan Finn has it right. These PRT enthusiasts are distracting us at a time when we need all our brains and focus for the real stuff. Out they go.

...ending with yet another example of how badly the small number of PRT hucksters are at astroturfing:

(Note on the poll results: It has in the last 24 hours been contaminated by no less than 106 visits from a single Comcast Cable site in Seattle, Washington, United States, with the result that exactly 65 votes have been recorded in favor of PRT as a solution from the one site. Now that’s interesting.)

Meet Jerry Sanders - Personal Rapid Transit & Gynecology Gadget Entrepreneur

2011-04-26T12:26:00.000-07:00

Last week, I posted about the most ridiculous PRT system ever conceived getting press in Canada, and Australia and Detroit.

I received a couple of emails from Jerry Sanders, the CEO of Skytran... Sanders is an interesting guy. Jerry is also the CEO of Femsuite.

Here's one of 3 Femsuite videos on You Tube titled "The Real Vagina Monologues" produced by StageFright Productions:

Screenshot of Jerry Sanders in front of a very-non-ADA-compliant prototype of a Skytran pod:

More news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Wacky Skytran Pod People Invade Detroit, Australia and Canada

2011-04-20T05:25:00.000-07:00

The most ridiculous PRT system ever conceived has been getting press in Canada, and Australia and Detroit. Detroit is one of the few major cities in the United States without an LRT line. PRT and other gadgetbahn concepts like the very wacky Interstate Traveller get press coverage in Detroit to muddle and misinform the public about what reality-based transit is all about. This week, Detroit Free Press editor Ron Dzwonkowski in a column titled "SkyTran offers Detroit new idea for mass transit" complains about the cost of LRT and concludes with this sentence:

So before this train leaves the station, maybe somebody in the city or region should see whether there isn't a better idea.

Ron Dzwonkowski could have easily Googled Skytran and learned that the Skytran hucksters have been around a long time and their "better idea" is totally ridiculous.

Skytran was first proposed towards the end of the last century. The supposed inventor of Skytran, Douglas Malewicki gave up on his concept years ago and stated his reasons for why he quit working to build Skytran on his website:

Aaaarrrrgghh! Ain't no such animal - yet. It is still just a concept that makes a lot of theoretical sense. It needs money to tear into it properly - a lot.

"Why it hasn't happened yet is mostly my fault. I detest paperwork and details. I can't see myself applying for any government energy or innovation grants because of all the bureaucratic crap that I would be stuck with. If they supplied paperwork bozos along with the grants to take care of their required paperwork, it might be more appealing. I guess I also don't want to deal with all their other silly rules either. If I want to hire all black engineers (and I know a bunch of dam good practical ones), to the exclusion of Hispanics, Women, Polaks, etc. the government won't let me. I start reading the grant application forms and rules and never finish - because I toss it all in the garbage first in disgust. Basically, I'm selfish. I prefer to think and create. I have plenty of other non-hassle projects I can be involved in to feed my brain endorphins or whatever. I am definitely not the right kind of personality to carry this project to fruition in the real world!"

That statement and other information was recently removed from the Skytran website, but is still archived at the Internet Archive:

Skytran's promoters claim that it is much cheaper to build than conventional transit modes because it can be built with a guideway extruding robot:

How can SkyTran per-mile costs be so low?

Because of the minuscule vehicle weight, an elevated guideway can be built with minimum materials for less than $1 million per mile and still exceed all static, dynamic and seismic structural criteria. This is much less than the cost of any paved road, rail transit or monorail system simply because the structure is highly specialized to carry 600 pound People Pod vehicles and does not have to safely support the 80,000 pound trucks that share the roads with all automobiles. The light weight per foot of the track design also allows the use of a semi-automated track forming manufacturing robot (much simpler than the Robosaurus machine) that enables a two shift crew to deploy one mile of two way track per day. This can be compared with proposed monorail trains (weighing 100,000 pounds) which require guideways costing well over $40 million per mile and many years to build.

A Phoenix New Times article from March 09, 2000 implies that Skytran is merely a stalking horse used by opponents of mass transit to distract voters and policy makers:

Opponents of a proposed Phoenix mass transit system would like you to picture their own pie-in-the-sky people-mover -- an overhead sky-rail system, where a computerized chauffeur zips you along at 100 mph in your private SkyTran vehicle.

No unnecessary stops. No congested freeways or brown cloud of air pollution. And no sharing a ride with total strangers, some of whom might give you the creeps.

The fare would be about 10 cents a mile.

And the taxpayers' cost to build this futuristic system over the streets of Phoenix?

Absolutely nothing, thanks to private investors whom SkyTran backers say will pay for the whole thing.

One problem. SkyTran is the brain child of an inventor whose biggest accomplishments are a fire-breathing giant robot and a flying beverage can cooler.

That hasn't stopped transit opponents from boosting the project in the hope of derailing the Transit 2000 proposal that will go before voters next week. In recent weeks, on talk shows, in local debates, in letters to the editors of various newspapers and even in the official voters pamphlet, SkyTran is being touted as the ideal alternative to the Valley's planned light rail system.

At this point, however, compared to the painstakingly crafted Transit 2000 plan, SkyTran simply won't fly. The company, based in Southern California, has never built such a complex transportation system. The company, not to mention other firms trying to develop similar personal rapid transit vehicles, has no demonstration projects and no prototypes to showcase. In fact, all it has is a Web site with sci-fi illustrations of how such a system could work. Two-person pods, which resemble the front of an airplane, zoom along elevated monorail tracks, with passengers entering and exiting every half-mile at portals.

Douglas Malewicki is SkyTran's inventor and chief proponent. He has proposed a 1,500-mile system of overhead freeways that would span not only the Valley but the state. And he says he could build it for $1.7 billion. But first, he wants to build a quarter-mile prototype track in Phoenix. He promises to accelerate a SkyTran pod to 130 mph on that short stretch of track.

Malewicki says a Valley company, which he won't name, is exploring using the system to transport its employees to the airport. That project will prove that SkyTran is not some wild idea, but is based on existing technology, combining electricity and magnetic levitation, he says.
"We're not real, yet," Malewicki admits.

Although his Web site first identifies Malewicki as a "mildly sane" creature from outer space (complete with an illustration depicting this), his résumé reveals more serious educational and professional qualifications, including a master's degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from Stanford University. Malewicki concedes he has no experience in civil engineering or public transportation. But he points to other of his inventions as proof he can deliver the SkyTran system for Phoenix.

Like Robosaurus, a 40-foot-tall, 30-ton, car-eating robot that has entertained spectators at car shows and other events, including drag races at Firebird International Raceway off Interstate 10 south of Phoenix. The robot, which is operated by a human hiding in its head, lifts cars, crushes them between its metal jaws, then spits fire.

Or Canosoarus, a small cylinder that slips over a beverage can to keep it cool, then can be turned into a far-flying variation of a Frisbee later.
Some of the inventions that Malewicki had a hand in do involve vehicles, but most are for record-book contests or pure entertainment value, like the Kite Cycle that appeared on the TV show CHiPs and is scheduled to be on an upcoming I Dare You: Ultimate Challenge on UPN.

SkyTran's Web site (www.skytran.net) refers to company "activity" in Arizona, Southern California and the National Park System. But those turn out to be simply proposals to bring the SkyTran system to those areas.

This is from a more recent, August 2nd, 2007 Arizona Republic article about Skytran:

Jerry Spellman thinks it's about time Mesa met the future.

"The future," as seen in generations of TV shows and comic books, is a time when people whisk around modernistic cities in modernistic conveyances without having to worry about traffic jams and bus or train schedules. The future is clean, energy-efficient and cheap. Spellman thinks the future should be now.

That's why the Mesa resident has spent the past decade serving without pay as the Arizona coordinator for Unimodal, a California company promoting a transit system called SkyTran.

"The technology is here. We're finally at the point where we can actually demonstrate it," Spellman said. He believes Mesa would be a great place for that because the city is not yet locked in to its long-range transit options.

Spellman is waiting for Mesa's official answer to a proposal SkyTran floated this spring to build a 25-mile line between the light-rail terminus on Main Street and Williams Gateway Airport in southeast Mesa.

The cost: $225 million.

SkyTran figured Mesa could kick in $150 million from its share of regional transportation funds, and SkyTran would dig up the rest from transit-oriented lines of credit. Spellman said the money is but a fraction of what it would cost to lay light rail along that same route.

But it doesn't look like Mesa is ready to shake hands.

Kyle Jones, chairman of the City Council's transportation and infrastructure committee, said the idea is more "pipe dream" than reality.

"We're always willing to take a look," Jones said. "But . . . we just can't expend money for something that's an unknown. They'll partner with us for a test deal? We just can't gamble with funds that way. People criticize us enough already."

What Spellman is advocating would look right at home either in Disneyland or on The Jetsons.

Bullet-shaped two-passenger vehicles would be suspended from overhead tracks. Instead of riding on wheels or bearings, they would be elevated and propelled by magnetic levitation at speeds up to 100 mph in city, and 150 mph between cities.

About every quarter-mile, there would be a station. Passengers would climb to the boarding platform, pay for their rides, punch in their destinations and jump into waiting cars.

A computer would guide the cars as they merge into the high-speed upper rail and then slow to a stop at the destinations.

Eventually, SkyTran advocates say, a city could be covered with a grid of lines, making it all but unnecessary to use cars for local trips.

"You don't wait like you would at a bus stop or a train station," Spellman said. "The vehicles are sitting there waiting for you. You just walk up and you get in and you go to wherever you want to go that's on the line."

There's nothing new about the concept, which some sources date to the 1930s. Companies have been tinkering with SkyTran-like ideas for years.

But although the company's literature speaks of SkyTran in the present tense, the idea has yet to get off the ground, literally.

Mike James, Mesa's senior transportation planner, said SkyTran "is an idea on the Internet, but that's about the only place it exists."

Only now, Spellman said, is the company building two prototype vehicles and some sections of rail. It hopes to put enough actual equipment together to erect a test loop of about 1,000 yards. Spellman said Williams Gateway would be an ideal location for the first test run.

James said that probably won't happen.

"We're really focusing in on what the federal government would call proven technologies," James said.

And as far as personal transportation, he said, "We as a city already have a good personal transportation system in our road network."

As Mike James says, Skytran is an idea that only exists only as a concept on the internet... and it is likely to stay that way. If you look carefully at the slick, computer-generated pictures of Skytran, you will notice that there is no accommodation for people with disabilities. The elevated guideway and the thousands of stations required for a regional system would create visual pollution that would face tremendous environmental opposition, particularly in historic neighborhoods and scenic areas. For those regulatory reasons and many others, Skytran has a nearly zero chance of being chosen as a preferred mode of public transport in any city.

Skytran is featured in this video titled "Phoenix light rail is Trash!"... keep it klassy PRT guys!

More posts about Skytran invading other cities and towns at the Dump Mark Olson blog.

More news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Is the Latest News About ULTra Heathrow Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) Launch Serious?

2011-04-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

There was a mention on the internet of a new launch date for the glorified golf carts of Heathrow:

BAA is also due next month to launch a system of robotic cars, or a Personal Rapid Transit system, to ferry passengers between the T5 Business passengers’ car park and the terminal without having to wait for a shuttle bus.

The ULTra site:

It is anticipated that the system will go fully live this summer, with the 21 pod vehicles operating 22 hours a day.

"It is anticipated"? Why aren't they more certain? A little history may help explain why they only anticipate going public...

Before Heathrow, the ULTra folks said they were ready to go six years ago - "The system was to have started carrying passengers at Cardiff Bay in 2005".

July 23, 2004: "the system could be in place at Heathrow by 2006"

21 October 2008: "... we are very much looking forward to launching this to passengers in 2009."

2010 (broken link, screenshot HERE): "Testing of the PRT System is continuing and, with all installation and communications challenges now resolved, we anticipate commencing passenger services in late Spring 2010.""

September 14, 2010: "We may find that we are allowed to gradually move to full operation unannounced later this summer."

This lack of certainty has not helped the credibility of the as-yet unproved pod "system" as PRT promoter Steve Raney explains in this video:

Meanwhile, here in Minnesota, there's an effort to get legislative support for the proposed PRT project in Coon Rapids. The session is scheduled to end in May... just before the new launch date. Hmmmmmmmm.....

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair. Convicted felon is spokesman for the CPRT.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

The so-called Morgantown PRT (not a true PRT system) 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Citizens for Personal Rapid Transit Continue to Spread Misleading Info About Transit Costs

2011-04-09T15:32:00.000-07:00

One of the many unfounded claims of Personal Rapid Transit promoters is that PRT can pay for itself. Here's what then-Senator Michele Bachmann told Minnesota Public Radio:

Supporters range from Minneapolis City Council member Dean Zimmerman, a Green Party member, to Republican Sen. Michelle Bachmann of Stillwater. Bachmann says personal rapid transit, like many political issues, creates strange bedfellows.

"People on the right, people on the left, we have the common goal of moving people with transit, but doing it in the most cost-effective manner, in fact, in a manner that may end up costing no government subsidy, it may end up paying for itself," she says.

Taxi 2000 says PRT could be paid for by fares and private investors.

At the MnDOT PRT workshop last year (PDF), former Minneapolis Councilman Dean Zimmermann made a similar claim:

In terms of cost, the legislature is willing to spend all kinds of costs to subsidize all these kinds of transportation. No one is dif-ferentiating between capital cost and operat-ing cost … Every single vendor in here will tell you if we build this system, it will pay back its cost with revenue. Light rail takes $10 million a year of public subsidy. The bus system, 25 percent paid for by users, and let’s not even go into the automobile, the most heavily subsidized transportation system. PRT is the only system mentioned that will pay for itself in terms of operating cost.

I saw Dean Zimmermann tabling for the Citizens for Personal Rapid Transit (CPR) at the 6th Annual Sustainable Communities Conference in downtown Minneapolis, so I was able to ask him to explain how PRT could pay for itself:

Of course, transit systems cannot survive without subsidies, But, in these tough fiscal times, it is a claim that cash-strapped citizens and public officials may want to hear. This comment on a forum explains why subsidy-free PRT is a fantasy:

First, you say that PRT will pay for itself. This is preposterous. You have a system that has low volume and will need extremely sophisticated infrastructure. There is no way, theoretically, that you can have such a system that will pay for itself.

Second, no genuine PRT system has been built anywhere ever. So you have no proof to back up your argument there.

Third, every time they try building a PRT system, they go to local governments to ask for money. So that's just proof of more fantasizing on your part.

Finally, ALL TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS COST MONEY. It's just that systems such as light rail are the very systems that Detroit grew up around. So when we talk about light rail, it is a serious investment with proven gains that works in other cities -- and has worked here before. That is why light rail is credible, and why such untried, never-implemented systems as PRT are a joke.

Also interesting is that the CPRT continues to make the creepy and bogus claim that people don't like riding with "strangers" (click on the picture to make it bigger):

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust (Almelo)

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Another Crackpot Personal Rapid Transit Proposal Bites the Dust

2011-04-05T19:51:00.000-07:00

Pardon the awful Google translation, but you'll get the idea from this article from March 23rd about a pod project in The Netherlands:

Monorail plan finally abandoned

Almelo - Almelo The cooperation of the municipality to develop a monorail stop is put in 2012.

The mayor and aldermen find the current financial position of Almelo, a good reason to keep up with it.

All mid-nineties, the Alderman Anthon Sjoers the futuristic plan for a monorail in Almelo.

Almelo joined a European project that was investigating realization. Almelo was one of the cities where such a monorail could be built.

Against the project was always much resistance.

Also present in the college whose names VVD thought it was nothing.

According to the college games except the financial situation of the municipality, including "changing insights into the future role and functions of the municipality a role in the decision now to stop. Over the years evolved into a so-called PRT monorail system, Personal Rapid Transportation. This system consisted of a concrete runway at several meters high, which was closed by an automated cart system would go away.

In the first versions of the Almelo Downtown Plan was also flirting with the monorail. although it never outgrew the status of studies project.

The actual investigation of the PRT is therefore already in the college in 2006. Since then kept the town active in seeking external sources of funds and to create support for the system in town. The latter did not really succeed.

Also by the college a "wait and see attitude" of the Twente Region and the Ministry of Transport said.
The past two years the city has spent 1,800 euros to the PRT project.

Until 2012, another 4,000 euros needed to build the ongoing cooperation. There were 23,500 euros from a contribution from the Twente region. The rest of the money, another 18,500 euros, the municipality spend raising and improving the existing bus stops.

As always, the pod hucksters wowed the suckers with a CGI video:

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Strange Minnesota industry - 3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

3 Proposed PRT Projects, 6 PRT Companies and 2 PRT Lobbyists in Minnesota

2011-03-11T15:21:00.000-08:00

Last week I posted links to articles about a proposed $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

It's really is starting to look as if there's a PRT "industry" in Minnesota.

There's a list of Personal Rapid Transit projects in Minnesota on the Google Transport Innoovators forum:

* Coon Rapids for Rob Jacobs,

* Winona and Duluth for Taxi 2000,

* Bill James talked about an effort in New Jersey and a computer campus N. of Duluth,

* I think that Joe Lampe has an edge city to the N. of downtown Minneapolis

* Ed Anderson is quiet, but says that he has some irons in the fire.

List of PRT businesses is from a CPRT brochure (view on Google):

PRT Updates from Minnesota

JPods

Hull, MA passed a resolution supporting PRT. JPods expects to lease private land and build the first leg there in the next 4 months. New Jersey is considering declaring performance standards, allowing anyone access to public rights of way that can privately finance transport networks that exceed 120 mpg.

PRT International

Dr. Ed Anderson has been working for many years to acquaint planners and decision makers with the potential of an optimized version of PRT for solving urban transportation problems. He gave a presentation to the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority in December 2010. Dr. Anderson works on advising a number of people in various locations around the world on various PRT projects or pending projects. He is willing to give courses on PRT of any desired depth.

PRT Minnesota

PRT Minnesota’s current focus is on preparing a patent submission for their PRT mechanical design. PRT Minnesota is still
seeking funding to complete the technical development program and achieve manufacturing readiness.

PRT Partners

PRT Partners is based in the Minneapolis area and is headed up by Robert Jacobs. PRT Partners assembles teams, technology, and projects that solve specific urban transportation and land use challenges.

Taxi 2000 and Skyweb Express

Currently, Taxi 2000 is working with two financial institutions interested in implementing Skyweb Express projects using a private public partnership agreement. They are also working with corporations for implementing system on corporate campuses. Taxi 2000 continues to work with Winona, Minnesota to build a PRT demonstration and laboratory facility.

Not mentioned is Rob Jacobs' other company Smart Infrastructure which is pitching the pod project for Coon Rapids.

There are two PRT lobbyists - Mark D. Olson for Smart Infrastructure and Edwin Cain for Taxi 2000 Corporation. Taxi 2000 spent nearly $80K since 2004 lobbying in Minnesota.

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a lobbyist for would-be PRT vendor proposing $100 million pod project in Coon Rapids.

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Former Rep. Mark Olson Returns to Capitol as a Lobbyist for Personal Rapid Transit Company

2011-03-07T08:11:00.000-08:00

Remember Mark Olson?

If you don't, you can read about his antics as State Representative at the Dump Mark Olson Blog. Rep. Mark Olson is perhaps best known for his arrest and conviction for endangering his wife... from Wikipedia.:

On November 11, 2006, days after winning re-election Olson was arrested in Blaine after police were called to his Big Lake home. According to the criminal complaint, Olson’s wife Heidi told investigators that after an argument Olson pushed her to the ground three times. Olson later admitted to having taken his wife by the shoulders and "placing" her on the ground, according to the police report. After spending two nights in jail, Olson was charged with two misdemeanor counts of fifth degree domestic assault....

...Olson was convicted of domestic assault by intending to cause fear of bodily harm against his wife. He was acquitted of the more serious charge of intentionally inflicting or attempting to inflict bodily harm. Olson publicly commented on the verdict by saying "I don't believe I had any intent to cause fear, but anger can cause fear and I did get angry." The Republican members voted to officially expel him from their caucus in early December 2007....

He was voted out of office, but apparently he's back at the Capitol... as a lobbyist.

According to the Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure board's website Rep. Mark Olson is back at the Capitol lobbying for a company called "Smart Infrastructure":

Rob Jacobs of Brooklyn Park is listed as the President of Smart Infrastructure. Rob Jacobs is a longtime pod promoter, As head of the non-profit "Starting Line Foundation" a while back, Jacobs proposed a pod/stadium scheme to the Legislature. You can download a PDF of the wacky plan at this page on the House website.

Rob Jacobs is also President and Senior Partner at PRT Partners, LLC.

Recently, Rob Jacobs pitched the pods to Coon Rapids:

COON RAPIDS, Minn. -- A new mode of transportation could one day connect Northstar train riders to stores and businesses in the Riverdale area.

It's called "Personal Rapid Transit" or PRT. The system runs on specially-built tracks. The idea is being pitched by a local businessman.

"It's no waiting, no stopping, aways have a seat, always ready."

Pod cars used for Personal Rapid Transit can take you non-stop to your destination. It's an old idea that would use new, smaller vehicles with seating for five.

Robert Jacobs with Smart Infrastructure pitched the idea this week at a City Council worksession. He's says the system would connect the Northstar Commuter Rail station with key areas of Coon Rapids.

And the pricetag for the pods ... hold on to your hat...

County officials also saw the PRT presentation at the worksession. It's clear that everyone's interested in a self-sustaining project. The estimated cost of the project is $100 million.

UPDATE: According to another article in the ABC newspapers, the cost of the pod project in Coon Rapids just went up:

According to Nevinski, Jacobs, when making his presentation to the council, estimated the cost to build the system at $112 million.

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

The CPRT table at U of M Jobs Fair.

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Citizens for Personal Rapid Transit (CPRT) Table at UofM Jobs Fair

2011-03-02T12:11:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I posted a link to an article titled "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future". The article has a link to the Light Rail Now history of PRT flops. There is a list of more recent fiascos at the bottom of this post.

You'd think the University of Minnesota's Center for Transportation Studies would steer clear of PRT. But, the CTS invited the pod hucksters to table at yesterday's 2011 Transportation Career Expo at the Coffman Union.

Screenshot from the Citizens for Personal Rapid Transit (CPRT.org) website:

The CPRT's website announcement says they would talk to students about the "emerging PRT industry"... which of course there isn't much of what could be described as an "industry" and the flawed, absurd PRT concept has been "emerging" since there was a guy in the White House named Dwight Eisenhower... PRT is that old, I'm not kidding.

A student sent me photos of the CPRT table at the jobs expo. In this photo you can see what appears to be the same PRT promoter in this You Tube video I made of the CPRT guys at the 2008 Living Green Expo.

The University should also be concerned by what is clearly visible in the photo below - on the right corner of the table, a stack of maps created by disgraced former Minneapolis Councilman Dean Zimmermann:

This San Jose Podcar conference newsletter also has the PRT map created by Zimmermann.

Click on the screenshot to make it bigger:

Apparently, Dean Zimmermann is still very much a part of the CPRT. Andrea "Drea" T. Walker, the newly elected chair of the CPRT lists Dean Zimmermann as one of four "Prominent Minnesota People in PRT". Not mentioned is the fact that Dean Zimmermann was convicted on 3 counts of bribery in 2006. The CPRT likely violated their non-profit status by electioneering for Zimmermann and other PRT-promoting candidates in the 2005 election. The CPRT used to meet at Dean Zimmermann's home, but now meet in restaurants and park buildings.

In addition to taking bribes, Dean Zimmermann tried to convince real estate developer and government witness Gary Carlson to invest $250,000 in PRT:

A while back, I videotaped Zimmermann protesting reality-based transit and promoting Personal Rapid Transit at a transportation forum. Zimmermann gave me a tortured explanation for accepting cash from FBI witness Gary Carlson and refused to sign a waiver for the FBI tapes shown at this trial:

Members of the Citizens for Personal Rapid Transit (CPRT) also spread the nonsensical conspiracy theory that Zimmermann was framed by the FBI:

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Daventry citizens say "Pods Off" to PRT TWICE!

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

The Pawlenty administration wasted thousands of taxpayers' dollars promoting personal rapid transit .

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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. New post-mortem: "Masdar City Abandons Transportation System of the Future".

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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Personal Rapid Transit is Sooooo NOT Happening in Masdar

2011-03-02T05:14:00.000-08:00

The failure of pods to launch at Masdar has been reported before... but the Singularity Hub has a few more details about this epic pod FAIL:

....the Personal Rapid Transit system has been shelved, yet the prototype remains in place.

The "prototype" is a dozen or so noisy, bouncy pods that go back and forth between two points in a basement.

The article goes on to say this about the glorified golf carts of Heathrow:

Masdar City, once planned to be fully operational in 2020 but pushed back to 2025, may be an urban planner’s dream come true as well as a playground for tech companies around the world, but the future of transportation? Unfortunately, no. The closest we are to seeing real personalized transport in operation is the underwhleming[sic] ULTra system at Heathrow airport now servicing a 1.9-km point-to-point guided track between Terminal 5 and the N3 Business Car Park.

The Heathrow pods are only "servicing" employees at this point, but "underwhelming" is right.

I predicted PRT would flop in Dubai 5 years ago :

A year ago, during one of the debates between Gary Dean Zimmermann and Robert Lilligren, Zimmermann announced that ULTra had two big contracts to build PRT systems, one in Dubai and the other in one of Heathrow Airport's parking lots. Since then I've seen no evidence of actual construction on either of these projects. Like every PRT project in the last thirty years, Heathrow and Dubai will likely be flops or fakes.

I was right. Both pod projects in Heathrow and Masdar were fakes, not the PRT we've seen in the uber-hyped CGI videos (no free-standing, elevated stations, only two stops etc.). Masdar PRT is now an official flop in the long and costly history of PRT flops... and the Heathrow pods will join that list eventually.

Speaking of predictions.. click on the screenshot below to make it bigger:

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Citizens Say "Pods Off!" Again in Daventry

2011-02-18T08:50:00.000-08:00

Do the pod people ever give up? Not in Duluth and not in Daventry.

The last time The Personal Rapid Transit hucksters came to Daventry, the citizens turned en masse to say "Pods Off!". Some Daventry residents even posted a Daventry anti-pod page on Facebook. The Daventry Town Council - a separate governing body than the pod-promoting Daventry District Council (DDC) agreed with the citizens, saying:

"Daventry people have not been apprised of the full extent of the infrastructure required to operate the proposed PRT system. This lack of information clearly denies them the opportunity to make reasoned judgement and comment. "

After listening to a report by a councilor who had visited Heathrow 5 and saw the much-hyped transportation revolution first-hand, the Daventry Town Council voted to reject the pods:

RESOLVED: That Daventry Town Council reject Daventry District Council’s proposals for a PRT system and/or pilot scheme in the town, on the basis that it is inappropriate for and unacceptable to the people of Daventry.

The Daventry Express (The Gusher) reports:

Council puts brakes on pod plans

DAVENTRY District Council (DDC) has told the Gusher it will not be pursuing plans to build a pod network in the town.

Despite revealing at a European transport conference last week that pods were the preferred option to “solve the town’s transport problems” DDC has now said it will be looking into the possibility of bringing cyber buses to the town.

The buses, known as group rapid transit (GRT), do not require a driver and travel ‘on demand’ in specially built lanes.

The council says this makes them more attractive, energy efficient and much cheaper than pods.

The Daventry Express has received dozens of letters from readers after Simon Bowers, the council’s corporate manager for development and property, revealed that building a pod network in Daventry would cost around £85 million.

But DDC said this week: “The council is not pursuing a PRT (pod) system because of the level of costs and in response to the concerns that have already been expressed by residents on the subject....

A sample of comments from the anti-pod letters:

"I find it incredible that DDC are reconsidering reinstatement of the PRT pods after the tsunami of opposition from what seems like the entire population of Daventry."

"Seriously, I would like to know if an assessment survey has been carried out to predict what impact the pods will have and I would also like to know, and I don't think I am alone here, how much money has already been spent on this idea and how much more will be squandered in the future if this comes to fruition?"

"Come on DDC – wake up! We cannot afford the pod system. Look at the original figures that were discussed (presented in a very optimistic manner that will probably have to be multiplied by a factor four or five for a much more limited service than linking to Long Buckby rail station)."

"It is evident if you speak to people on the street in Daventry the majority think the pods/PRT are a complete waste of money for a town the size of Daventry."

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Taxi 2000 Corporation spent nearly $80K on lobbying in Minnesota in 5 years. Taxi 2000 lobbyist and Bachmann pal Ed Cain also lobbied for the phony U.S. Navy Veterans Association charity.

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Taxi 2000 Corporation Spent Nearly $80K Since 2004 Lobbying in Minnesota

2011-02-16T09:30:00.000-08:00

Taxi 2000 Corp. Lobbying expenditures:

2009 - $5,200.00
2008 - $0.00
2007 - $14,086.00
2006 - $0.00
2005 - $20,000.00
2004 - $40,000.00
_________________

Total - $79,286.00

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Daventry says "Pods Off!". also see the Daventry anti-pod Facebook page.

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

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Layman's Law About the Internet & Gadgetbahn

2011-02-15T13:33:00.000-08:00

Richard Layman has come up with the gadgetbahner equivalent of Godwin's Law in the Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space blog:

Layman's Law for Discussions about Transit is:

"As an online discussion about transit grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving monorails or personal rapid transit systems approaches 1." In other words, given enough time, in any online discussion about fixed rail transit, someone inevitably criticizes some point made in the discussion by declaring the technology obsolete, offering the example of monorail and/or personal rapid transit systems as more advanced and superior technologies.

Recent news about the ongoing, worldwide pod boondoggle:

Duluth News Tribune article about Taxi 2000 trying to restart Duluth pod project - hilarious comments.

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Daventry says "Pods Off!". also see the Daventry anti-pod Facebook page.

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

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

The Duluth News Tribune: "Remember that Duluth monorail idea? It's back"

2011-02-09T09:29:00.000-08:00

Peter Passi writes in The Duluth News Tribune:

Ideas to redevelop the former Lafarge cement terminal property have resurrected talk of another ambitious project.

Remember Taxi 2000 Corp. — the outfit that pitched building a monorail-type transit project in Duluth seven years ago?

That project fizzled when the city lost its bid to nab $24 million in state bonding money to jump-start the personal rapid transit, or PRT, system. But talk of bringing Taxi 2000 to town is back, thanks to Sandy Hoff and Alessandro Giuliani, two would-be developers of the former Lafarge site.

Giuliani and Hoff said they have been in discussions with Taxi 2000 recently about how Duluth could become the first community in the nation to demonstrate how the Fridley, Minn.-based company’s Skyweb Express system would work in the field.

It's a good article, r ead the whole thing.... the article has quotes from Michael Setty who wrote an excellent white paper about PRT in Winona.

Taxi 2000 was the would-be pod vendor Michele Bachmann was talking about when she told MPR back in 2004:

Supporters range from Minneapolis City Council member Dean Zimmerman, a Green Party member, to Republican Sen. Michelle Bachmann of Stillwater. Bachmann says personal rapid transit, like many political issues, creates strange bedfellows.

"People on the right, people on the left, we have the common goal of moving people with transit, but doing it in the most cost-effective manner, in fact, in a manner that may end up costing no government subsidy, it may end up paying for itself," she says.

Reporters never bothered to ask Bachmann exactly how PRT could pay for itself. The media never bothered to ask questions like that. Reporters rarely mention the long and sorry history of PRT flops and fiascos. And so, the PRT boondoggle goes on and on to waste time and money. How many chances do these PRT guys get? As far as Tim Pawlenty was concerned, they get as many chances as the taxpayers will give them. MnDOT's workshop for the pods August 18th, 2010 was a big fiasco that included disgraced, former Mpls councilman Dean Zimmermann.

Of course, if Taxi 2000's grab last year for a taxpayer subsidy is any guide, this Duluth project will likely include a request for local bonding or other government pork subsidy .

The Pawlenty administration wasted at least $150,000 on personal rapid transit . Will there be outrage from "fiscal conservative" GOP/Tea Partiers to public funding for the pod boondoggle in Duluth? Will Rep. Chip Cravaak support the pod project in Duluth? How about Taxpayers League President Phil Krinkie? Will Lieutenant Governor Yvonne Prettner Solon support public funding for the Duluth pod project as she did when she co-sponsored Bachmann's pod bill in 2004? Here's a hilarious video of Prettner Solon & the pod people at a senate hearing on the pods. I've written and called Prettner-Solon's office about whether she will support public funding for the Duluth pod project - no reply.

Both Krinkie and and former gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer voted for one of Rep. Mark Olson's pod amendments (voted down 26 to 107 on April 12, 2006). Which probably explains why the Taxpayers League refuses to take a position on public funding of the pod boondoggle.

The perennial pod farce will end in fiasco as it always does - a bunch of money and/or time wasted for absolutely nothing. This Duluth project sounds a lot like the Alameda project that was also supposed to have pods:

San Francisco Chronicle July 21, 2010 article:

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.' "

In the case of Alameda, I can say I told you so:

Ken Avidor, a Minnesota transit advocate and critic of similarly proposed systems, called the project the latest iteration of "gadgetbahn," a play on "autobahn" the German word for freeway. Gadgetbahn refers to highly technological transport systems relying on untried innovations. "All of these gadgetbahn projects always rely on totally unrealistic cost estimates," he said. "A lot of the public officials today are baby boomers. They saw the Jetsons. And it has a lot of appeal," Avidor said. After rattling off a list of failed proposals, including one where proponents claimed to keep costs low by having elevated structures built by machine, Avidor accused PRT supporters of wowing people with technology to block realistic alternatives. "It's a stalking horse for people who don't want light rail," he said.

A list of recent pod flops and fiascos:

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Pod people invade Newport News ( the article quotes retired professor Vukan Vuchic)

Bizarre hearing for wacky Jpods proposal for Hull, Massachusetts. Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Daventry says "Pods Off!". also see the Daventry anti-pod Facebook page.

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

The Swedish/Korean PRT prototype malfunctioned 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 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. Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Cross-posted at Dump Bachmann.

Real Estate Developer Proposes PRT for Duluth Waterfront Project

2011-02-02T13:27:00.000-08:00

Many years ago, there was a lot of talk and some bills in the legislature about PRT in Duluth, but it never happened. But, after striking out in Winona last year, they're back in Duluth:

There has also been a lot of discussion about developing a marina, along with a transportation system called Skyweb Express.

"It's a pod car that moves on a rail and could be connected through the waterfront district and end up right inside a hotel lobby," says Hoff.

Sound expensive?

It would be but Hoff says there are opportunities to receive funding through bank financing and private equity firms.

Well, those banks and private equity firms are going to have a lot of fun figuring out exactly how much PRT costs.

Joe Lawlor at the Newport News Daily Press wrote an article about figuring the cost of PRT:

"Cost of pod cars not easy to find"

In my Friday story about Personal Rapid Transit, a pod-car system touted for Newport News and the Peninsula, I didn’t go into great detail about the cost aspect, except to say that an advocate estimated it would be 75 percent less costly than light rail.
If you didn’t read the story, the gist is that pod cars, carrying three to six people on a raised guideway, would zip to key locations on the Peninsula, as an alternative to buses and cars. The advantage of the pod car idea, according to advocates, is that it would take you where you want to go, without stopping or sitting next to people you don’t know.

Councilwoman Pat Woodbury is advocating the idea, pointing out that it would cost a lot less money than light rail, which is far off in the future for the Peninsula anyway.

Trying to find cost estimates on something that’s mostly theoretical like PRT is difficult. However, we’re going to try.

Read the whole thing.

Pod Promoters in Newport News

2011-01-21T09:48:00.000-08:00

Joe Lawlor has a good article in The Newport News Daily Press titled "Personal rapid transit in Newport News?".

It's sad to read about yet another community wasting time on Personal Rapid Transit, but at least Mr. Lawlor has reported fairly the pros and cons of PRT. Lawlor quotes the indefatigable, pod-promoting Larry Fabian. The article also quotes retired Professor Vukan Vuchic:

"People study it a lot, but when it's closer to actually building it, it never gets done."

Google the following cities with "Personal Rapid Transit"; Daventry, Duluth, Minneapolis, Winona, Long Branch, Indianapolis, Rosemount, Seattle, Cincinnati, Ithaca, Alameda, Denver... all had a similar experience with PRT - the pod promoters came to town with lots of media hype, PowerPoint presentations, promises, demands... and months, years later... nothing.

Recently, the proposal to bring Jpods to Hull, Massachusetts ended in fiasco.

What never happens is any meaningful citizen participation - this is what I wrote in the Winona Daily News:

Boston Personal Rapid Transit promoter Lawrence J. Fabian in his Sept. 23 letter chided the citizens of Winona for their lack of enthusiasm for the PRT plan proposed by the city of Winona.

“If Winona wants to think small,” scolds Fabian.

An interesting criticism when you consider that Winonans never really had an opportunity to comment or ask questions in a public forum about the PRT project.

According to a Jan. 20 article in the Winona Daily News, a meeting where the public could have asked questions was for Winona City Council members only, “While there was little discussion of PRT during the meeting, the vote came after council members examined the system during a pre-council informational session that lasted more than one hour.”

I recall a similar PRT “informational session” for Minneapolis city officials only on March 26, 2005. When a proposal for a PRT project later came up for a vote in committee, the PRT promoters failed to show up and the matter was tabled. More recently, public officials in Daventry, England, complained that PRT promoters would not show up at public forums to answer questions. The Minnesota Department of Transportation held a “PRT workshop” Aug. 18, which cost $50 to attend and was not a public meeting. Why are PRT promoters avoiding the public?

When the city of Winona revisits the issue of PRT, as it has recently indicated it would, I would suggest they hold a free, public forum and invite critics as well as promoters. I would also suggest inviting experts in the field; transit engineers, transit advocacy groups and environmental groups. But most of all, I urge Winona city officials to invite the public.

Grassroots support for any big public project is essential. For it is the citizens who will end up paying for it— and if built, living with it.

Hopefully, the citizens and public officials of Newport News will avoid wasting time and money on PRT by insisting on open and meaningful public participation in the decision-making process.

More PRT Flops and Fiascos:

JPODs Flop in Hull, Mass.

Personal Rapid Transit is NOT Happening in Masdar.

Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Personal Rapid Transit Is NOT a "New Technology.

The Pawlenty administration wasted at least $150,000 on personal rapid transit .

PRT Conference Newsletter & Website Features PRT Plan by Convicted Felon. Dean Zimmermann also showed up at last year's bizarre MnDOT "PRT Workshop.

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Daventry says "Pods Off!". also see the Daventry anti-pod Facebook page.

Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

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

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

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

ULTra Misses Another Self-Imposed Deadline for Heathrow Launch

2011-01-07T16:56:00.000-08:00

This from a December 5th article in the Times of India:

At present, Heathrow airport is the only place where the pod is operational. While it is right now being used by the airport staff, the commercial operations will start soon after Christmas.

Well, it's after New Years and the "news" from the ULTra January Newsletter is that they are still testing, testing , testing...

1. November Heathrow “revenue service trials” produce excellent results

The four weeks of "Simulated Revenue Service" trial - intended to mimic real operating conditions - using Terminal 5 staff as passengers - is now complete. This involved operation of the system for 10.5 hr each day of the trial period. During these trials ULTra achieved a System Availability - defined as the ability for any passenger to travel to any station during any given minute -- of 99.6%. For comparison, most APMs (Automatic People Movers) in similar applications function with availability levels between 97.5% and 99.5%, and are more reliable than manually-driven alternatives. Among all transit modes, ULTra's debut performance puts it near the front of the pack in terms of delivering proven reliability.

So why not open it to the public? What are they afraid of?

This isn't the first time the uber-hyped, glorified golf carts of Heathrow missed a launch date.The pods were supposed to open to the public way back in 2006. and have failed to launch at least 3 or 4 times... who cares anymore.

Meanwhile, ULTra gives us an picture (see below) what an elevated PRT station would look like. Heathrow doesn't have a free=standing elevated station. Plans for city-wide PRT systems would have scores of these huge, ugly stations, festooned with advertising. Note the pylons sunk in the middle of the sidewalk. Very pedestrian-un-friendly:

According to a presentation by Martin Lowson (available at the ATRA website) the new launch window was supposed to be "Mid 2010":

The June, 2010 launch date also came from this guy who supposedly works for ULTra:

Testing of the PRT System is continuing and, with all installation and communications challenges now resolved,
we anticipate commencing passenger services in late Spring 2010." This is what I'd call a joint BAA/ATS approved statement.
http://www.ultraprt.com/cms/index.php?page=latest-schedule

That link is broken. Here's a screenshot:

Well, when June arrived we got this info via a tweet from the PRT Guru that linked to his website where we found this statement:

June 2010: It appears ULTra will not meet its previously-announced June opening date at London’s Heathrow Airport. BAA has issued the following statement: "The Heathrow pod is innovative technology and we have always said that the system will be launched when it is ready to do so. The system, as well as being a world first, is bespoke [customized] to fit into existing airport infrastructure and the process of completing this is informing our decision about the launch date. Testing is continuing and we anticipate that the system will officially launch in the near future."

The statement as it appeared on the ULTra PRT website (link broken):

Latest Schedule

"The Heathrow pod is innovative technology and we have always said that the system will be launched when it is ready to do so. The system, as well as being a world first, is bespoke (custom-made) to fit into existing airport infrastructure and the process of completing this is informing our decision about the launch date. Testing is continuing and we anticipate that the system will officially launch in the near future." - BAA's schedule statement, June 2010.

It's not surprising that the effect of these postponements of the much-publicized ULTra have made public officials skeptical, even irritated at PRT promoters as explained in this video:

More PRT Flops and Fiascos:

JPODs Flop in Hull, Mass.

Personal Rapid Transit is NOT Happening in Masdar.

Twitter Reveals Morgantown WVU Personal Rapid Transit's Frequent Breakdowns.

Personal Rapid Transit Is NOT a "New Technology.

The Pawlenty administration wasted at least $150,000 on personal rapid transit .

PRT Conference Newsletter & Website Features PRT Plan by Convicted Felon. Dean Zimmermann also showed up at last year's bizarre MnDOT "PRT Workshop.

PRT is so not happening at Heathrow.

Daventry says "Pods Off!". also see the Daventry anti-pod Facebook page.

Video: Bill James Pitches Jpods Resolution to Hennepin County.

Federal Funding Nixed for Winona Personal Rapid Transit Project

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

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

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

Farcical Hearing for JPOD Proposal in Hull, Mass.

2011-01-06T21:40:00.000-08:00

The Hull Sun:

At this week’s meeting, Van Hamm provided selectmen with an overview of the new scaled-back two-year trial run proposal to build a smaller one-mile system at a cost of around $9.5 million, which would run between the DCR parking lot on the bayside of Hull, to the beginning of the HRA property.

The new proposal calls for five stations with 67 pods, she said.

Van Hamm said there would be an economic growth potential provided by an uptick in visitors to the community, who she feels would view the Jpods as more of a novelty amusement park ride, which she envisions would bring a benefit to nearby businesses.

She estimated income of about $1.5 million a year from 2,000 riders in the warmer months and 1,000 riders in the winter paying $6 a ride.

Six bucks for a one mile ride?

“I would personally like to see the president or CEO from the company come down and do a more thorough presentation to the board,” Olivieri said.

Van Hamm asked Oliveri if he’d like to call James on his cell to get answers to some of the financial questions he has.

“No, we asked him before, and his response was he was going to sell t-shirts…. I want someone who can give us concrete answers,” said Olivieri.

Selectman John Brannan also voiced puzzlement over the figures that would make such a proposal work.

“If you have a lot of investors willing to lose money, please send them my way — I have a lot of ideas myself…. It’s not a build it, and they will come (situation),” said Brannan, saying he wants to see a marketing plan and more financial information about the plan.

Citing the interest of full disclosure, Brannan asked Van Hamm if she has any potential financial gain from this project, and she responded “I’m here as a resident of Hull.”

It's sad to see the yet another community waste time on Personal Rapid Transit. Hull is not alone. Scores of cities have had similar experiences with the PRT hucksters; Daventry, Duluth, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Winona, Long Branch, Indianapolis, Rosemount, Seattle, Cincinnati, Ithaca, Alameda, Denver and many more...

Personal Rapid Transit is NOT Happening in Masdar

2010-12-31T16:19:00.000-08:00

GulfNews.com:

The future of the PRT system

Masdar City is piloting its Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system, which is made up of electric-powered, automated, single-cabin vehicles.

Magnets embedded in the road are used to locate their positions and on-board sensors detect obstacles in their path. They are also powered by a recyclable battery that recharges while the vehicles are standing at the stations between trips. The vehicles can travel up to 40 kilometres per hour on straight roads and 25 kilometres per hour on curves.

News reports have said Masdar plans to scrap the PRT system.

When "Weekend Review" asked Masdar about it, they said that "in the past two years, there has been a surge in the development of electric and robotic vehicles in the commercial market and we wish to study these to make comparisons with our PRT system".

Another big FAIL for ill-starred, would-be pod vendor 2GetThere. But the PRT hucksters will likely continue to promote 2GetThere's glorified golf carts into the next decade. Here's a wacky video that offers a collage of animated pods, King Kong, dirigibles and other junk as some kind of an environmental solution:

2Getthere PRT from Rafaël Croonen on Vimeo.