Since the creation of the
automobile, overly-congested roadways have caused copious amounts of pollution
in major cities across the world. Ultimately, this increase in pollution
ultimately led to a widespread awareness of environmental protection reforms
across the globe. To help combat the problem, SkyTran, a NASA Space Act
company, has been developing what will come to be known as a sky taxi.
By the end of October this year, the
company hopes to debut an “aerial mass transit system featuring cars that magnetically glide 20 to 30
feet above the ground along elevated tracks” (Kavilanz) in Tel Aviv, Israel. Initially,
just one car will run on the transit path of about 900 feet; but soon, more
cars will be assimilated into the debut system. After the debut of the system
in Israel, SkyTran also hopes to expand to other countries around the world
including the United States.
The goal of this project is to help
alleviate the environmental implications that pollution has created by
replacing automobile transportation with a more environmentally sustainable transportation
mechanism. The taxis run solely on
magnetic alleviation technology in which electromagnets produce the lift and
force to propel the cars forward. Not only is this technology more
environmentally-friendly, it is also cheaper and simpler to build than railroads
and subways, and can be installed in a matter of days.
Not only will this new mode of
transportation help with reducing the carbon footprint has left on the world;
but it will also allow developing countries to have a more sustainable mode of
transportation that they can actually afford. That being said, do you think
that the introduction of a mass transit system of transportation in developing
countries will help them to better establish themselves in the global
marketplace? Will this be able to allow them to move from that of a developing
country to that of a developed country? Furthermore, what implications do you
think this will have on the automobile and railway industries?
Link: http://money.cnn.com/2015/10/23/smallbusiness/skytran-air-taxis/
5 comments:
This concept seems totally space-age and, well, weird. I don't know how I would feel if I'm just driving along and look up to see a car above me. I think it would freak me out! The thing that worries me the most is that it could be installed in a matter of days. I feel like for something like cars gliding above roads and other drivers, it should take a little longer to install.
It should be noted that Israel isn't a developing country and has one of the strongest tech markets in the world. That being said, because Israel has a such smaller population than the US's, I think that would be a better test market to figure out if this is a safe and reliable mode of transportation.
I have to slightly disagree on some points, I think this is super cool! Yes, very space-aged and all, but I think we all knew that eventually vehicles and other modes of mass transportation would be moving in this direction. We have airplanes and helicopters, and since forever ago, movies about the future have always featured flying vehicles of some sorts. Even cartoons, such as the Jestons, pictured the future this way. That being said, I think that, if successful and eventually affordable for the common Joe, these electromagnetic modes of transportation would absolutely cause some problems for railways and regular auto's. With so many people in the world looking to go green in every aspect possible, I can't see how this wouldn't eventually put normal ground transportation almost out of business. Obviously not anytime soon, but sometime in the future ground transportation could be a thing of the past, just like covered wagons and traveling by horse.
I think this could end up being a really great way to travel once it has been tested and approved. Not only is this a good transportation alternative, but it has been proven that mass transit is much safer to travel by than is any other form of transportation. With that being said, we could see a decrease in the amount of traffic accidents and congestion on the roads. As far as developing countries, I do think this would be a way to provide cheap transportation for society at a relatively low cost to maintain and establish as well. Less developed countries would have a way to make a living by using this alternative transportation option and could provide for their families as well as boost the economy of their homeland in the process for better living conditions etc. Overall, I think this is a very interesting and a great alternative to the transportation we currently have now.
As stated above this technology seems very space age. I have to question how feasible this actual technology is for long term infrastructure. Being very new and advanced, I don't think that this will be seen in developing countries anytime soon. I hate to be a pessimist but SkyTran will face many hurdles before they can build and expand their mass transit system.
There is no question that the idea of the sky taxi is very new-age and cool, however I think there needs to be more consideration that goes into how plausible the idea really is. Factors such as long term infrastructure due need to be taken into consideration before jumping to any drastic conclusions.
However, taking an optimistic standpoint, if this technology does work out, I think it will have very substantial benefits to both the environment and developing countries who struggle with transportation and roads. Developing countries will have the means to be at the same standard as other more developed countries. Not only will it help these developing counties grow, but it will also help global growth.
On the other hand, it will have crippling affects to both the auto and railroad industry. If SkyTran is successful in expanding their technology globally, it will completely wipe out the auto and railroad industry. Why would people want to use a less efficient, more expensive, more polluting form of transportation? It will be interesting to see how this all pans out in our future.
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