Tel Aviv is set to become the world’s first city with the magnetically levitating skytran system of mass transit, described by its developers as ‘the Jetsons made into real life’. designed to reduce urban traffic congestion, skytran would provide a greener, less expensive, faster, and more comfortable alternative to cars and bus lines through the use of personal two-seater pods in a point-to-point service which travelers can use to reach specific destinations. a vehicle is requested via website or mobile app and arrives almost instantly. the traveler boards, having already entered the desired stop, and the pod glides there directly. in this way, skytran also provides a possible solution to the last mile problem encountered in most public transit networks.
Jim Brasher of the television show Masters of Innovation visits the Skytran.
Skytran’s CEO Jerry Sanders estimates that while the cost of a Skytran trip would be slightly more expensive than a bus because of its more private enclosure, it would remain less than a comparable trip in a taxi, in addition to being faster. Alongside Tel Aviv, other cities in israel, as well as in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the USA have all expressed interest in installing Skytran networks.
Design render for an outdoor Skytran station
Video courtesy Jerry Sanders
The system was co-developed by engineers from NASA and the private company skytran, based at NASA’s ames research center in california, where a full-scale working skytran is currently under construction. tel aviv, the first city to begin implementing the maglev system, has just appointed US consultancy jenkins gales & martinez to oversee the introduction of the revolutionary technology.
Skytran runs on no set schedule; travelers request a pod by specifying their desired starting and ending locations via app.
