Pod Cars: The Future Of PublicTransportation by Marvin N. Docena

My featured hybrid car for today is a driverless, electric-powered car. Also known as a "Pod car" that is a four seated vehicle that is said to be launched when London's Heathrow Terminal 5 opens next year. These Pod cars are controlled by an internal computer and an onboard sensor system and will transport passengers between the main terminal and its car parks.

Meanwhile in Abu Dhabi, residents of the carbon community Masdar will be able to travel around on the world's first citywide personal rapid transit system. The system will be using a fleet of driverless, electrically powered cars running on special tracks below the streets. The passengers will enter a car that will carry the maximum of four people and they will select one of the 100 stops throughout the ride.

The advantage of these driverless, electric cars from other transportation vehicles like trains and cabs is that it provides point to point travel and lessens the need of passengers to share space with large number of passengers. The futuristic concept of this car offers significant benefits over traditional transit systems.

London's Heathrow Terminal 5 where a 3.5 km network will start operating next year and will be the first public test of the concept. Meanwhile the Masdar plan is bigger and will be the first citywide version. The Abu Dhabi Future Company which is the company that made this project possible said the experience that people can get from using the system that is similar in hiring a taxi except the cars are that you'll be hiring is driverless.

Stops will be located in such a way that passengers will not have the hard time to walk more than 100 meters before they reach their final destination. The tracks will be concrete at ground level and the entire city will be elevated six meters above. The decision of separating the network from the city is to prevent pedestrian traffic as walking will be a must throughout the development.

Electric vehicles are said to appear in 2010 when the Masdar project is complete. The transit system will take eight years to build and will be developed in parallel with the entire city. Working on the development is expected to start early next year.

If this Masdar project will be successful, it will limit traffic and the need for a long journey. And with these developments, solar panels on the roofs of buildings will generate electricity and will help avoid or the release of CO2 gas which it is very helpful in preventing "GLOBAL WARMING" which is a big threat for all of us living in this world. This project will benefit everybody if it will be successful.

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