AIRPORT CITIES 2014 DAY 2 STREAM B SESSION 3

1. Potential Role of Personal Rapid Transit in Airport Cities
AIRPORT CITIES WORLD CONFERENCE 2014
SAM LINKE

2. This presentation will address
• Introduction
• Land use in airport cities
• Airport city transport options
• Personal Rapid Transit (PRT)
• PRT in airport cities
• Conclusions

3. Introduction: a role for PRT in airport cities
• Airport cities create complex transport patterns
– Unique land use and activity pattern
– Connectivity and efficiency of movement are fundamental to
airport city success
– A hub airport at the centre of an airport city implies a large
geographical area
– Growing demand
– Freight movements are key
– Limited highway capacity
• Personal Rapid Transit can form part of an overall transportation
strategy to meet these needs

4. Airport Express Rail Link
To CityAirport Express Highway
T2 T1
SchoolsRecreationMedical
Simplified land use plan for an airport city
Long term
parking
Airline
offices
Business
Parks
Conference &
exhibition
centre
Free Trade
Zone
Logistics
Hub
Retail park
Hotels & retailGolf courseWarehouses
Hi-tech park
Residential
Hotel

5. Comparative scores for transport within airport cities
Perspective | Criteria
Heavy
rail
Airport
express
MRT LRT BRT
Bus
/coach
Customers
Level of
service
Hours of
operation
Fares
Operators
Cost
Emissions
/ noise
Capacity
Score Low Medium High

6. Personal Rapid Transit (PRT)
• What is it?
• Potential applications
• Considerations for site selection
• Current systems
• Cost
• Performance

7. What is PRT?

8. What is PRT?
• Fully automated with centralised control system
• Direct non-stop routes to selected destination
station
• On demand system – empty pods deployed to
meet established demand pattern
• Operates on lightweight, inert and segregated
guideways (elevated, at grade or underground)
• Safety based on rail regulations, with “safe to
proceed” system installed
• Standard lead acid batteries and therefore zero
emissions (on site)
• Maximum pod speed of 40km/h with a capacity of
4-6 passengers with a headway of 4 seconds
• Turning radius of 5m and maximum gradient of
10% (up) and 8% (down)
• Network can be extended incrementally

9. Potential applications of PRT
• Airports
• New urban city developments
• Eco towns
• Hospitals/University campus
• Business Parks
• Park & Ride
• Tourist attractions
• Extension of heavier transport
mode (last mile solution)
• Countries with a tropical climate

10. Considerations for site selection
• PRT is not suitable for:
– Heavy commuter loads along
a linear corridor
– Long distance journeys or
high speed routes
– Pulsed demand patterns

11. Current PRT systems
• Early (1975) campus application: Morgantown,
West Virginia, US:
– Operates in 3 different modes
• Airport application: Heathrow Ultra Global PRT:
– 21 vehicles, 3.8km of one way guideway, 3
stations
– Over 99% reliability since implementation
• Outside of airports:
– Masdar City PRT: 2getthere. Initial pilot
network with 13 pods is operational (passenger
& freight).
– Suncheon Bay, South Korea: Vectus PRT, with
40 vehicles, 2 stations, and 5km of elevated
double-tracked guideway. Rail based system.
In commissioning phase.

12. PRT Cost
• Capital cost varies:
– Site conditions
– Location/geography
– System size
– Station density
– Station design
– Peak system loading, average journey length, desired
average wait time
– Average vehicle occupancy, tidality of flow
– Elevated/at-grade/tunnel/culvert/cantilever guideway
Generally ~1/3 cost of LRT

13. How does PRT compare to other modes?
Perspective | Criteria PRT
Heavy
rail
Airport
express
MRT LRT BRT
Bus
/coach
Customers
Level of
service
Hours of
operation
Fares
Operators
Cost
Emissions
/ noise
Capacity
Score Low Medium High

14. Taoyuan Aerotropolis
From: http://www.aerotropolis.com/files/TaoyuanSchematic.jpg

15. Taoyuan Airport – MRT as a transport mode for airport city?
• Distance between MRT
stations; walk distances
for passengers
• High capacity vehicles
operated where demand
may not justify
• Long wait times between
trains, particularly in the
off-peak
• High CAPEX and OPEX

16. SchoolsRecreationMedical
Airport Express Rail Link
To CityAirport Express Highway
Long term
parking
Airline
offices
Business
Parks
Conference &
exhibition
centre
Free Trade
Zone
Logistics
Hub
Retail park
Hotels & retailGolf courseWarehouses
Hi-tech park
Residential
T2 T1Hotel
Concept PRT network serving an airport city

17. Conclusion
• PRT is now proven technology
• Track record and awareness is still
limited
• High levels of customer satisfaction
proven
• Lower CAPEX and OPEX costs
compared to rail based systems and
larger APM solutions
• Incremental delivery is a strong
advantage
• PRT can increase sustainability of an
airport city
• PRT should be considered as a transport
mode when masterplanning airport cities

18. www.jacobsskm.com | worldwide