Startup Wants to Replace Cars and Subways With Elevated Pods

Self-driving cars might not solve the problem of rush-hour traffic, and in cities with some of the worst commutes now–like L.A., where each driver wasted an average of 102 hours stuck in traffic last year–most commuters still don’t choose to take public transportation. A startup called Transit X argues that we need a different form of mass transit to get people to stop driving. The company’s system, which it says will soon be deployed in the Philippines, will use networks of lightweight, automated, solar-powered pods.

Each small pod is large enough for up to five people, and suspended from a narrow elevated rail 14 feet above the ground, tall enough that a semi truck can pass underneath. At a stop, passengers would enter their destination in an app or a kiosk, walk up to a small platform to board their own pod nearly immediately, and then take a nonstop ride to wherever they’re trying to go. (Each stop is designed to have an exit ramp for boarding, so it’s possible for other pods to pass by without stopping until their final destinations.)

Source: fastcompany.com