Congestion is one of the main challenges cities are trying to handle. In China, most cities have more than 11.5 million people resulting in high congestion of both people and vehicle. Some annalysts have viewed the idea of a futuristic bus as a solution to the rampant traffic problems.
A Beijing-based company by the name Transit Explore Bus has designed a track-based vehicle that is tall enough to let small cars pass under it. The bus so-called ‘ straddling bus’ is about two traffic lanes wide and tall enough to let less than two meters vehicles pass under it.
The bus can travel at a speed of up to 60 km/h and carry as many as 1,400 passengers. It was showcased during the 19th International High-Tech Expo in Beijing over the weekend.
Engineer Song Youzhou is said to have been working on such a design for at least six years, and now the company is planning to begin testing it July or August. The bus will be tested on the roads around Qinhuangdao City, north China’s Hebei Province. Engineer Youzhou had a similar project in the past though it never materialized.
With this project, Youzhou has renewed enthusiasm for the new model, citing that cost would be less than a subway and help in air pollution reduction. He clarified that it has the same function as the subway but cost 16% less of what a subway cost. Manufacturing and construction time are also much shorter than that for a subway.
The futuristic bus has its share of skeptics with CityLab writer Poon noting that such a technology would have drastically to change Chinese option around car ownership and pollution if it is to have a relevant impact on air quality. The manufacturer, on the other hand, believes the bus can solve all traffic problems while also saving space available on the road for commuting.
Have a look of the bus
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