Sugar Land, TX is hoping to become the first city in the U.S. to build an autonomous elevated cable and rail system.
Using a private company solution called the Whoosh system
What's a Whoosh system?
"Whoosh is a really innovative transportation system that uses small electric vehicles to quickly move people around town,” Adolph explained. The small electric vehicles resemble gondolas, but we're told they're way more advanced, using autonomous technology to move along a network of elevated fixed cables and rail, allowing for quick trips that are environmentally sustainable.
The cost of this system was not mentioned in the article or the video. They mentioned it will be a public private partnership and will seek state and federal funding and not use
city tax dollars.The engineer in me thinks about the lifecycle cost of such a system and the overall O&M. Plus will citizens actually use it. if it is too expensive for people to ride no one will take it. But, if it is free and cheap it will be destroyed by the free rider problem. If I was the city engineer for Sugar Land Texas this would be dead on arrival!