Engineer moots cable cars as public transport in city

Engineer moots cable cars as public transport in city

The Hindu

`SkyTran' representative makes a presentation in city

# Cable car can travel at a speed of 160 kmph
# It will cost Rs. 6,000 to make one cable car
# The cable line will cost Rs. 1 crore per km

BANGALORE: Can Bangalore have an autorickshaw-like vehicles that move like cable cars?

The promoter of "SkyTran" — as the system is called — attempted a presentation on such a project before the city's engineers who raised several questions on its workability at the Institute of Engineers here on Wednesday.

Big promises

Promises made by Stanley Ravi of the city-based SkyTran Promoters were big: You can travel at a speed of 160 km an hour non-stop from one destination to another in two-seater Skytrans; skytrans cost a mere Rs. 6,000 a unit and a station where people board them or alight from them can be small and just needs an investment of only Rs. 6 lakh; they move in one direction and there will be accidents.

Mr. Ravi said the tracks could be laid at Rs. 1 crore a km. Since there will be magnetic levitation, there will be no friction and this will translate into less maintenance cost, he said.

But engineers expressed several doubts. Where is the place in the city to build such an elevated pathway for the Skytrans? Mr. Ravi said the project would require only 1.2 metres of road at every 50 metres to erect columns.

Many questions

Will you find that much space say on Avenue Road and Chickpet for example, asked one engineer.

Mr. Ravi said the pathway could even come up on the buildings wherever possible.

There would be a three-dimensional pathway for the Skytrans to move into the city so that the vehicles do not intersect at any place, he said.

How will the people get into or out of them?

The Skytrans would get off the tracks and come down to the station for alighting where people could board them.

At any given time, six Skytrans would be waiting for people to board, Mr. Ravi said.

The stations would have eight-foot staircases for the people to reach the stations to board them.

When an engineer pointed out that there would be electric cables at this height, Mr. Ravi said the cables could go into the channel in the track.

Too many people

Another engineer said since many people would need the service and too many vehicles were required to transport several people at one go.

Mr. Ravi offered to discuss the issue individually with the engineer.

He offered to satisfy the doubts of engineers in one-to-one meetings.

Mr. Ravi said a lot of engineering effort had gone into evolving the system and its designer, who invented it five years ago, was willing to answer all questions about it. He clarified that the system was yet to be tried anywhere in the world.