Three ATRA members, Ingmar Andreasson, Robbert Lohmann and I, are presenting at a Forum titled The Future of Advanced Smart Transit in Makkah (Mecca) Saudi Arabia next week. The event is being sponsored by the Umm Al-Qura University. I am looking forward to the event, but not to spending 50 hours traveling in one week!

The Transportation Communications Newsletter has agreed to publish a link to this newsletter, effectively increasing circulation by over 7,000. The Transportation Communications Newsletter is a free daily update of news and information related to all aspects of communications in the transportation field. To be added to the distribution list, please send an email to the editor, Bernie Wagenblast  at

bernie@bwcommunications.net

ATRA has joined the American Public Transit Association. We hope that we can become more involved in each other's activities and our members can learn to know each other better.

Abstracts are due May 6, 2015 for the International Conference on Automated People Movers & Automated Transit Systems to be held in Toronto, Canada from April 17 - 20, 2016. Please contact me at pmuller@prtconsulting.com if you plan to submit an ATN-related paper - we will try to coordinate our efforts to maximize impact.

Volunteers Needed!

The more we try to do, the more help we need. Please help us improve transit.

Membership Coordinator

ATRA is in need of a membership coordinator. This position involves maintaining the list of members (in coordination with the treasurer), sending out dues reminders and generally working to maintain existing and encourage new membership. If you are interested, please contact me at pmuller@prtconsulting.com.

Letters to Transit Professionals

ATRA is sending informative letters about automated transit networks to all 384 metropolitan planning organizations, 155 transportation management associations, 730 transit agencies and 52 state departments of transportation. This is a labor-intensive exercise and we could use some help. If you would like to donate a few hours of your time transcribing names and addresses into an Excel Spreadsheet, please contact Kate Engel at kengel@prtconsulting.com.

APTA Call for Presentations

APTA is seeking presentation proposals for a Sustainability and Public Transportation Workshop to be held in Portland, OR August 2-4, 2015. If you wish to submit on behalf of ATRA, please contact me at pmuller@prtconsulting.com. If approved by ATRA, your expenses may be subsidized up to 50%.

There is plenty of interesting news this month so, Enjoy Reading!

Best regards,

Peter Muller, ATRA President

$4B for 4 BART stations OR $2B for 100 ATN stations?

By Rob Means

The $4000M (million) price tag of burrowing a tunnel under San Jose for BART is too costly financially, and draws resources away from other transit options. The projected 55,000 passengers/day service level in 2045 is too small relative to the need for transit. And the construction schedule ensures that global climate disruption will overwhelm us before it's built. So, if given only two choices - build it or not - I would vote for "not" because the return on investment (ROI) is too low.  Read More...

First Annual Martin Lawson Award DEADLINE Draws Near!  

Due to the generous support from the Lowson family, an annual student paper award has been established.  Submissions for this $500.00 paper award are DUE BY March 31, 2015.    Read More...

Greenville County considering installing elevated rapid transit system
by Dal Kalsi
GREENVILLE, SC (FOX Carolina) -The Greenville County Economic Development Corporation is taking bids from companies who could build an elevated rapid transit system in Greenville.  Read More...

Greenville wants to build elevated rapid transit system
by Nathaniel Cary  
Greenville Online - At first it sounds implausible, and it just may be, but a Greenville County-affiliated board has asked for bids to build a personal rapid transit system filled with tiny, futuristic-looking electric podcars on an elevated line that could stretch across 20 miles to connect high-traffic locations in Greenville.  Read More...

s model, which will host real human riders, will focus more on the role of the travelers -- testing pod and station designs.  Read More...

This elevated taxi system promises to do Noida-Gurgaon in half an hour
by Navadha Paandey and Debabrata Das

The Hindu Business Line -NASA partner SkyTran wants to build two pilot projects in India to prove tech. With increasing urban congestion, travelling to work has become a hassle in cities. But what if you could escape the road traffic and whiz to work in an elevated driverless pod? Sounds futuristic?  Read More...

Futuristic pod cars being considered for Domtar site
by Elizabeth Payne
Ottawa Citizen News - The former Domtar site, now known as Zibi, is still a wasteland of shuttered industrial buildings on islands and shoreline along the Ottawa River. Within years, developers say, it will be transformed into a green and vibrant waterfront community where people will live, work and play. And that community could have a futuristic touch.  Read More...

A matter of safety, convenience: The PRT should operate 24 hours a day

by Emily Torbett

The Daily Athenaeum - We've all been there. You're downtown, drinking at one of the High Street bars, house parties or fraternities, having a great time with your friends, but as the night comes to a close and you inevitably tire of the party scene, you're faced with the dilemma of how to get home. You want to be safe and responsible, but you're definitely too far away to walk.  Read More... 

Driverless Parking Shuttles ...better than buses? 

by Peter Muller

A comparison of PRT and shuttle buses at large and small airports. Talk given at the ACC/AAAE Symposium, Denver, Colorado, USA, February 18, 2015  Read More...

Call for Speakers: Rail~Volution 2015

Rail-Volution Website - For more than 20 years, Rail~Volution has been on a mission to build more livable communities with transit. We are passionate about transit and livability because they truly make a place better - economically, socially and environmentally. Read More... 

VTA Collaborates on Global Call for Transit Innovators 

by Cody Kraatz

VTA Website - Imagine a trip on VTA that's custom-tailored to meet your needs in real-time. it dynamically routes a zero-emissions vehicle to pick you up with the push of a button on a smartphone app that let's you plan and pay for the trip.  Read More...

`Metrino' pods set to connect Delhi, Manesar 

by Dipak Dash

The Times of Delhi - New Delhi: In a move to beat the congestion on NH-8 between Delhi and Manesar, the road transport ministry has offered this stretch for the country's first `Metrino' project. Under this project, small, fully automatic, driverless vehicles known as pods will travel suspended under an overhead network. The overhead network will be laid on the median of the highway stretch.   Read More...