*removed externally hosted image*
Is it actually a train anymore though? Or just a really long bus?
it looks more like a long bus to me, but if it gets cars off the road efficiently I'm not gonna quibble :)
Good public transport is still good public transport after all.
This is self-driving done right. (It actually works)
It would be ideal to have overhead wires at least for parts of the route so that less battery capacity is required. It would decrease vehicle weight which would be a problem for these. More vehicle weight means the tires wear out faster, and it's a problem with EVs but it would especially be a problem for these.
If there is no driver there are the important questions of what happens when there's a collision or the bus is illegally obstructed by a car driver. There's also the question of accessibility. When a wheelchair user gets on the bus here, the driver is the one who lowers the ramp and secures their chair to the bus. You would want to have someone there to get disabled passengers out in an emergency, too. I have more faith in them figuring these things out in the more limited circumstances of self-driving along a defined route, though.
It's not as good as trains running on electrified rails because steel wheels are inherently more durable, but as long as you're going to have a system of roads, these are not too bad of a choice.
It would be ideal to have overhead wires at least for parts of the route so that less battery capacity is required.
Why not just switch batteries at the bus stops though?
This way the routes can be changed at will without the need to worry about having to pass by lines at certain points. It might even be less complex. And perhaps even make (some of) the bus stations themselves movable so you can reroute everything as needed.
As for the control system, I do wonder how much AI is being used as that seems right on the edge of what is doable without AIs.
The "just" is doing a lot of work there. Automatic battery swapping involves a lot of moving parts and a lot more points of failure. It would make more sense for an automatic bus like this than a Tesla that is naturally going to be parked 90%+ of the time, though.
It’s not as good as trains running on electrified rails because steel wheels are inherently more durable, but as long as you’re going to have a system of roads, these are not too bad of a choice.
This will be an issue if this is not just used as an intermediate solution until real tracks are build. This thing seems to have all wheel steering and therefore all wheels will roll along exactly the same path on the road and increase the creation of ruts. But as long as the road is properly maintained it seems to be way better then a normal bus. Not only capacity wise but especially comfort wise, given that longer and larger vehicles usually imply a smoother ride compared to "short" busses (even though the word short seems to be a bit off for something that is usually 12 to 20m long).
Sync these with traffic lights so that they always roll through greens and this is a reasonable low cost replacement for Bus Rapid Transit.
Yes, all the traffic light timing is integrated with all the navigation apps and other applications like this
I think the motivation is to make something like a tram that can be easily retrofitted where there is no infrastructure for trams
