Official launch for Heathrow driverless pods parking transfer service
17.09.11
Driverless pods transporting passengers from a Heathrow Airport car park to Terminal Five were officially launched yesterday, following a year-long trial. The automatic vehicles can carry up to four people plus their luggage between the business car park and the terminal building.
The pod system consists of 21 low energy, battery powered, driverless, zero emission vehicles capable of carrying four passengers and their luggage along a dedicated 2.4 mile (3.8km) guide way. Their batteries are recharged when the pods are stationary between journeys. It will cut the number of bus journeys around Heathrow by 50,000 per year.
The 5 minute journey is on demand - meaning less waiting time for car park users - and non-stop from start to destination at the touch of a computer screen. The pods use 70 percent less energy per passenger than it takes to power a car, and 50 percent less than a bus. More than 100,000 passengers have already used the pods since the service started on April 18.
The pods were initially designed in 1995 by engineers during a research project at the University of Bristol, and were then developed with the airport in a project that took six years and cost £30m. BAA described them as 'the most innovative transport system and the first new example of transit technology in 100 years.'
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