Personal Mass Transit?

from the keep-to-yourself dept

More than three years ago, we wrote about the idea for a transit system called RUF, standing for "Rapid, Urban, Flexible". It involved simple electric cars that could work as regular cars (with limitations) on regular roads, but could also hook up to a public transport system and zip you wherever you wanted to go. It was a cross between cars and public transportation. There was talk about setting up such a system in Europe. However, Americans don't want to have to go out and buy an additional dinky electric car, so over here we came up with yet another transportation system named PERTS for Personal Electric Rapid Transit System - that would let you keep your existing car. However, when you wanted to travel longer distances, you would simply drive your car into a pod and program where you wanted to go. These sounded like great ideas, but it looks like we're actually taking a step backwards with what is being looked into lately. Over in Minnesota, they've announced interest in setting up a Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) monorail system. Basically, it's a monorail with a bunch of separate cars on the tracks. You'd go to the station, get in an available car and tell it where to go. This seems a lot less useful than just using your own car as part of the system. It also seems fairly limiting if the PRT monorail system doesn't go where you need it to go. Not everyone is happy about the system. They think it's a waste of money and might be ugly. They're probably right. The current system sounds like it's only a tiny bit more useful than current mass transit systems in that you have a little bit more flexibility. However, it doesn't have the same level of usefulness/flexibility as those earlier systems we described. The one area where this could be useful is in urban situations where cars are almost completely unnecessary - such as NYC. But, the subway system there is already pretty effective.
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  1. identicon
    dorpus, 31 Mar 2004 @ 11:47pm

    Forget Transit

    Who wants to live near noisy train stations, magnets for the dregs of society? A car for every person is what makes us great. I have the privilege of moving out of the Bay Area for the Midwest soon -- nice open flat land.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    Peter B. Randolph, 1 Apr 2004 @ 5:39am

    Morgantown's PRT

    As mentioned in the article, Morgantown, WV has a PRT that serves the downtown area and the University very well. Here's a link with some details and photos http://web.presby.edu/~jtbell/transit/Morgantown/

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Oliver Wendell Jones, 1 Apr 2004 @ 7:03am

    On behalf of the Midwest

    Speaking as a duely appointed representative for the entire Mid-Western United States, I have been asked to come here and say, "Dorpus, stay away. You're not welcome here."

    Please don't make us use force.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Mark, 1 Apr 2004 @ 9:39am

    Personal mass transit.

    Speaking as someone who spent a lot of time on the elevated trains in Chicago, and who now rides the bus in Seattle, I can say that the one thing that really sucks about mass transit is the guy sitting next to you. He's fat, he smells, he's yelling into his cell phone, and he has no sense of personal space. The genius of this system is that you're only sitting next to people you choose to sit next to. I love it already.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    dorpus, 1 Apr 2004 @ 11:12am

    Re: On behalf of the Midwest

    Sorry buddy, I've got a full scholarship and stipend. I'll get to keep my part-time job in California too, working remotely. I'm going to have a new job looking up your regional family history of medical problems and predicting your chances of death.

    ahahahahahahahaha
    hahahaha California ahahahahahah
    ahahahaha

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. identicon
    joe dokes, 24 May 2004 @ 11:52am

    Re: Personal mass transit.

    PRT, personal rapid transit sucks. It is a stalking horse for the car industry and transit wreckers. Check out

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. identicon
    joe dokes, 24 May 2004 @ 11:53am

    Re: Personal mass transit.

    PRT, personal rapid transit sucks. It is a stalking horse for the car industry and transit wreckers.<br>Check out <A HREF="http://www.roadkillbill.com/PRTisaJoke.html" PRT is a Joke</a">

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    Mr_Blog, 22 Jun 2004 @ 9:23am

    Re: Personal mass transit.

    The claim that PRT "is a stalking horse for the car industry and transit wreckers" is an unprovable smear. PRT is NOT a joke

    link to this | view in thread ]

  9. identicon
    Bongo Pete, 17 May 2005 @ 7:13pm

    Re: Personal mass transit.


    I'll bet you or someone you know is a shareholder in a PRT company like Taxi 2000, right Mr. Blog?

    Too bad Morrie is pissing away Taxi 2000 shareholder's 's money on lawyers.


    link to this | view in thread ]

  10. identicon
    Mr_Blog, 1 Jun 2005 @ 12:21pm

    Re: Personal mass transit.

    People investing in PRT are putting their money where their mouths are.

    If I did know such people, how would that make Joe Dokes's comment not a smear?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  11. identicon
    Mr_Blog, 20 Jun 2005 @ 11:58am

    Re: Personal mass transit.

    People who are open to considering new transportation ideas will be interested in a new video animation of what PRT would look like if implemented as a corporate campus shuttle. The setting is Microsoft HQ in Redmond. The video and related information are on a new URL set up by the Seattle PRT group at bettercampus.org

    Someone mentioned to me the narrator sure sounds like Patricia Clarkson, but I think the odds of that are 99.999% against.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  12. identicon
    Scott Beherrell, 16 Jun 2009 @ 10:03am

    Personal Mass Transit is a market for US to sell globally

    Naturally in today's world the car is transporttation of choose.I have a concept that that would incorporate lightweight, ultra high-speed(200MPH+), on demand, modular interstructure and grid system. This technology could be powder with "Green" sources.
    The PRT is is based on over 200 year old technology, it time to dump the train track. I hope the US will grab the newer PMT (Personal Mass Transit) and market it globlally to places like China or India.

    link to this | view in thread ]


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