Autopilot is closer than you think. In April 2008, the opening of Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 5 will launch a slue of progressive projects to make travel easier. Our favorite is the Personal Rapid Transport – a driverless travel system that uses its own guideway network to get around.

The debut of this project is a significant step in its history of trial and error. Since 1953 people have worked to implement a networked system of personal transports, but this will be the first time it’s ever been publicly tested. We’re excited to see how things develop. A successful implementation of the project could lead to other benefits for cities, the environment, and traffic safety.

UK’s Guardian wrote an article on the Personal Rapid Transit System where they outlined the concept’s nuances and what kind of impact its technology could make on cities and airports. As stated in the article, “PRT is not just a very short bus or train. For starters, there is no timetable. Instead, visitors to a PRT network should find pods waiting for them, making it more like a taxi rank than a bus stop. According to Advanced Transport Systems (atsltd.co.uk), the Bristol-based company behind Ultra, the maximum waiting time at a terminal will be just 12 seconds. The second difference is that there are no stops: the pod will not pick up further passengers along the way, and there are no traffic lights to contend with. Finally, the pod is as private as a taxi, so you are always guaranteed a seat, even in peak hours.”

Information on PRT from around the web

About Heathrow’s Terminal 5

The Guardian on PRT

PSFK on PRT

The Official PRT Site