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Personal Rapid Transit

Started by Santimmendez, January 16, 2015, 08:04:32 PM

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Santimmendez

Hey guys! Today I spent my day trying to get information about the Personal Rapid Transit (PRT).
This thing, if you didn't knew it, is a small, self-driving, and eco car.

For more info, you should check this web site:

http://www.personalrapidtransit.com/

Here everything is explained. Today I was thinking about possible way to develop something like this in Simutrans, and here is where we all can help to develop in simutrans a new way of transportation!

Post any idea/suggestion/question!

Santiago.

Ters

Simutrans does mass transit on fixed schedules (in terms of stops), not personal transit. With a capacity of less than 10, so many vehicles will be required to move the passengers that it likely overwhelms player and computer alike. That there only can be one consist per direction per tile also severly restricts throughput. As such, I think it will be very difficult to get this into Simutrans.

el_slapper

Anyways, Personal rapid transit is not a good idea
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gauthier

I doubt this could be efficient enough in terms of capacity.

Let's take this example:
Line 4 of Paris'metro, currently served by RATP MP89 units (about 700 passengers each, it can be more at some times, or less at some times ...). At rush hours, there is one train every two minutes. That makes 21k passengers per hour.

Line 4 was built just under several avenues crossing Paris from North to South, let's build PRT rails above them. With only two rails (one for each direction), 21k passengers per hour makes 7k vehicles per hour, this makes one vehicle every ... 0,51 seconds. And I did not take the most crowded line in the world.

In Simutrans, the problem is even worse since distances are much shorter, so convoys are closer to each over. You would need several parallel PRT rails to reach the efficiency of one subway line. That is, obviously, impossible in a city.

Santimmendez

PRT is a good way of transportation between airport terminal, between big stations. I don't think it might be usefull in Paris replacing a subway line, but it might be usefull in little towns. I've read a lot about this new way of transporting, and it's not expensive and it could work in certain cases, for example, to get from the station to downtown, or any industry.
I think we shouldn't try to construct this in such as big cities like Paris or Buenos Aires, but I think it could be very usefull connecting airport terminals, or train stations.

Ters, again, I'm not thinking this in terms of big cities or with too much stations. Imagine this: Any station in the south of your city with (let's say) 20 stops, and in another terminal you add 20 stops too, you draw a personal car lane, and you buy mini-vans with a capacity of 25 passengers, they all must full it's vehicles, if not they won't go to the next station. The system just uses what it's neccesary, plus the system will never fail, and it's not expensive.

I think that in several cases, this could be a perfect solution. Of course is not a very PRT, but I took the idea and i'm trying to make it work in simutrans. Thanks everyone for your replies!

Ters

But it's between terminals that the flow of passengers is greatest, in Simutrans at least. The only place in Simutrans where such small vehicles could cope with the flow of passengers, is between a hub and a single attraction, factory or a few houses. But each such PRT line would need a separate part of the hub serving them, or you'd get congestion (can easily happen with buses carrying ten times as many passengers). That would consume a lot of space at the hub.

gauthier

Also, few capacity => few profit. In order to be profitable, PRT tracks and vehicles must be of ridiculous cost too. However, it could be a good system to serve single attractions, as Ters said. Players who want to make highest profit would ignore such attractions and not use PRT whereas players who want to serve everything will find this good.