Honolulu plans fully autonomous transit system

The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) is embarking on a fully automated transportation system to help reduce highway traffic congestion by as much as 18 per cent, officials say, taking as many as 40,000 automobiles off the road and replacing them with a fleet of four-car trains that can accommodate up to 800 passengers. Said to be the first fully automated wide-scale urban transit system in the United States, the $5.2 billion Honolulu Rail Transit Project features a 20-mile elevated rai
September 19, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation (HART) is embarking on a fully automated transportation system to help reduce highway traffic congestion by as much as 18 per cent, officials say, taking as many as 40,000 automobiles off the road and replacing them with a fleet of four-car trains that can accommodate up to 800 passengers.

Said to be the first fully automated wide-scale urban transit system in the United States, the $5.2 billion Honolulu Rail Transit Project features a 20-mile elevated rail line that will be run through a centralised, scheduled system to prevent human error and reduce delays.

Instead of human drivers, a centrally-located computer system will control stops, departures, and speed, and even open and close doors. Operation will be cheaper than for manually-driven rail, says Dan Grabauskas, executive director and CEO HART, and he also expects it to be safer. The autonomous rail line is expected to begin operating in three years.

Related Content

  • Embedded connectivity delivers real time travel information
    February 3, 2012
    Ton Brand describes the GSM Association's Embedded mTelematics programme. As the world's roads become increasingly crowded, consumers and businesses are demanding better real-time information to help them both avoid traffic congestion and make smarter use of public transport. Embedding mobile connectivity directly into vehicles can enable drivers and passengers to see live traffic flows in their localities, as well as the expected arrival time of the next bus, ferry or tram
    Read More
  • Spreading the word about Bike Share in the US
    April 19, 2016
    Smart bike share technology and funding policies help bridge the transit gap through the final mile as Andrew Bardin Williams explains. The sharing economy is coming to Portland this summer. BikeTown, the city’s new bike share program sponsored by Nike, will be launched in mid-July with 1,000 bicycles distributed across 100 stations throughout the city. Originally funded by a $2 million federal grant, the program has been boosted by a $10 million sponsorship deal with Nike ensures funding for the next five
    Read More
  • Transit takes on demanding role
    April 2, 2021
    Community transport - or paratransit - has historically formed the basis of demand-responsive operations. But with new routing technologies, David Crawford sees wider potential
    Read More
  • Silos are last century’s thinking
    April 21, 2016
    After 45 years in transportation, Ken Philmus sees the need for major change in a sector currently ill-prepared to meet the challenge of funding and rapidly advancing technological change. Having worked in both the public and private sectors, Ken Philmus, currently senior vice president of transportation solutions at Xerox, appreciates both approaches, but times are changing and he believes the sector needs to change too. “I like trains, planes and automobiles but I love the concept of mobility and that’s w
    Read More

Highlighted Content