Citation

Todd JK. Transp. Res. Rec. 1974; 522: 65-75.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1974, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences USA, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This paper shows that there is an obvious need for a continuous system to transport large numbers of passengers at speeds as high as 10 mph for distances as great as 1 mile. The disadvantages of various systems that have been proposed are discussed, and the operation of the S-Type Speedaway and the ways in which this design overcomes the disadvantages of earlier proposals are described. The development of the system began in 1968, and a full-scale prototype has been operating since 1971. Aspects of the design and the particular attention paid to passenger acceptability and safety are discussed. The point-to-point S-Type Speedaway has a short constant-speed entry section after which the passenger is accelerated smoothly in a curved path until the main high-speed section is reached. The speed of this section is as much as 5 times the entry speed. At the end of the high-speed section, the passenger is decelerated to step off the system at low speed. Capacity of a single unit is 10,000 people per hour. Applications and installations for high-speed moving walkways are described, and the paper concludes with a look at possible future developments of the system.

Language: en