Transit In Cities Could Be Transformed By This Autonomous Train-Bus Hybrid

There is no doubt that the U.S. is notoriously dependent on cars for transportation. Just 2% of commuters in the U.S. use mass rapid transit like subways every day, and U.S. rail projects can cost billions of dollars and take decades to be completed, according to Census data.

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“There have been proposals for light rail systems in cities across the world that either get greatly reduced or never happen as a result of the expense of putting rail on the roadbed due to the expense of putting rail on the roadbed. There is a significant disruption to the business community as a result of this," said Lisa Chamberlain, communications lead for the Global Centre for Urban Transformation at the World Economic Forum. "It is very expensive for the residents."

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A Chinese company has come up with a radical new solution to the problem. I would describe it as a train-bus hybrid that runs on rubber wheels but follows a fixed track based on a predetermined route. It's called Autonomous Rapid Transit (ART), and it's created and manufactured by CRCC, one of the largest manufacturers of mass transit systems in China.

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Peter Newman, Professor of Sustainability at Curtin University in Perth, Australia, said of his trip to the site: "I thought what I was going to see was something hiding like a bus." In other words, he states: "It may look like a light rail, but it is actually a bus." Nevertheless, when I rode it, I was amazed at the difference. The feeling that I could find myself having was that of being on a train.”

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It has been estimated that the cost of the ART vehicle per mile will be approximately one-fifth of the cost of a traditional tram system, which costs about $2.2 million. The vehicle has stabilizing technology like active suspension systems that enable it to maintain a more stable position than a city vehicle