|
|
Post by Tony Fernandez on May 24, 2008 9:24:41 GMT -8
I know that this is kind of hard to explain (and I wish that I still had the video of it), but there is a kind of BRT that I've seen that runs on the roads in the city center and then goes on rails to run quickly through the suburbs. I don't know if it's practical for Los Angeles or anything like that, but it definitely is an interesting take on BRT. What are your thoughts on it?
|
|
|
|
Post by wrcousert on Aug 11, 2008 11:59:27 GMT -8
 Why can't we do the same thing to buses? |
|
|
|
Post by nickv on Aug 11, 2008 21:32:13 GMT -8
In the year 2000, Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido) began developing a prototype DMV (Dual Mode Vehicle) 'minibus' that will carry 25 passengers and can operate as a train, running on tracks with steel and rubber wheels, as well as a bus, driving on roads with conventional tires. Now nearing completion this remarkable hybrid will be able to take advantage of existing rail track through more developed areas and then shift to roadways for operation in less-densely populated areas. Overcoming the main obstacle to this kind of service it can change from one type of wheels to the other in 10 to 15 seconds! (JR NEWS Aug 9, 2006)
I'll have to look into this more in detail to report its strengths and needs-to-improve. It certainly looks like it may have a future in mass transit, but unbiased studies need to come first. For starters, I think it would work as a "fun"-train or local streetcar; when the day is over, the DMV would spend the night in an existing bus yard.
Here's a video of the Hong Kong tram... It illustrates that it is physically possible to operate a caravan of streetcars on rails.
|
|
