We witness it every day at rush hour as we sit frustrated in traffic, wondering when will this increasing problem ever be solved?

Enter A New Idea:
The concept of affordable personal rapid transport pods, travelling above ground that whisk you across the city along an environmentally benign 2-directional elevated guide-way to your destination, in comfort, safely, swiftly and cheaply.

Is this possible? What would be the cost? Is it environmentally benign?

The system is called the Metropolitan Individual System of Transportation on Elevated Rail (MISTER).

With over $3 Billion allocated for a tunnel from Britomart in Auckland to Epsom, are the rate payers willing to dig further into their pockets for an outdated transport system, when that amount of money would cover the totality of suburban Auckland with a Personal Rapid Transport System?

The fact that even today the NZ Government is balking at such extravagance, gives us time to pause and look at other options.

• The MISTER system, will remove all of the Britomart and other interchange requirements which would be necessary with city rail using Britomart as a hub.
• Its AVERAGE speed (50 to 70 km/h) is by far higher than any current transit system, including metro (30 to 35 km/h), let alone buses and city rail.
• It provides high grade boarding and alighting: many, small stops, located anywhere, including inside of buildings and off the streets etc.
• No need to mess up traffic (as is an issue with light rail and with expansion of traditional bus services).
• Costs under $10M/km for a 2-directional guideway, including all infrastructure, vehicles and other costs. This is 10 to 50 times less than for city rail or metro.
• It will cause decongestion of all surface usage, both footpath and roads, while taking no much more space than lamp posts.
• And the whole of Auckland wide, not just the CBD, public transport can be served by this 'Personal Rapid Transport System' far better and without any taxes or public funding, instead of a heavily subsidised rail network, light rail and buses ($400 M/year, and $12B over 25 years, this is what we heard from Mayor Brown, right ?!)

Yes:

The PRT system, is a city-wide network linking all of the suburbs with each other and to the Central Business District and would transport people faster than rail or even car and directly to their destinations, without any need for transfers or parking space.

It would eliminate entirely the need for railway, light rail and buses in Auckland, while providing much more convenient, faster, safer and cheaper service, including it being available 24/7, all of the time without waiting and with no more than 2 minutes of waiting at peak times.

How does this compare with current 'solutions' ? At the same time, for the cost of building just this one underground tunnel system ($3B+) the PRT system would cover the entire Auckland area with over 300km of network, replacing all subsidised trains and all buses in the CBD and being capable of carrying 1 million plus rides per DAY, when current rail carries 10 million per YEAR !

PRT - Personal Rapid Transit  See the video www.mist-er.com
Is a 50 year old concept, and as a result of inexpensive computing technology is now a feasible mode of mass transport.

It consists of :

1. Elevated Guide-ways with small off-line Stops
2. Automated Vehicles
3. Automation  and computers. Extensive literature is available on the internet: http://faculty.washington.edu/jbs/itrans/

Infrastructure consists of a light guide-ways suspended 10-15 meters above the ground, over city streets or along the curb side or in the central reservation of the freeways or wide streets. Small and frequent off-line stops. Automatic, small car sized vehicles transport one or a few passengers who know each other (family or friends) in luxury and comfort.

Travel is on demand and always available (24 x 7) Travel directly from start to destination with no stopping and no interchanges. High average speed of 50 km/hr or better.

• Reduced traffic congestion
• Safety - personal and from accidents (safer than air travel)
• Comfort – as a private car, but a far less stressfull journey

Infrastructure development :

• Low cost
• Fast Non-invasive
• Profitable operation
• Easy access for young, old and disabled
• More Ecological than any current systems
• Resistant to earthquakes, storms, snow and flooding

Let Auckland Rate Payers have a discussion here in Auckland and also across New Zealand.

Have Auckland be the Leading Livable City within the Pacific Basin.

http://mist-er.com