Below is an outline of the arguments of the superior attributes of SEGway relative to conventional cars and
trucks, to rail mass transit, to PRT, to automated highway, another dual-mode system.
Conventional Rubber Tire Highway Vehicles
- Conventional rubber tire highway vehicles are far less energy efficient than SEGway because
SEGway is steel wheel on steel rail and flows at a constant speed as opposed to freeway traffic.
- SEGway is all electric and quite energy efficient reducing emissions to the air.
- Because SEGway's maximum througput is 6 to 7 times that of a congested freeway lane, and because it can run in the mediums of freeways, or elevated above freeways or other existing right of way, never again will there be a need to take land and build additional freeway lanes.
- SEGway will extend the life of the electric cars using it, reducing their annual mileage considerably,
thus reducing their maintenance and operating cost (including possibly fixed costs like insurance), and
increasing their resale value.
- Users of SEGway will spend less time commuting and the time while on the guideway can be used for
productive activity such as reading and responding to e-mail, reading the newspaper, practicing a musical
instrument, and even taking a nap.
- SEGway will reduce the commuting burden considerably.
- Freight will be delivered more rapidly and more reliably.
Rail Mass Transit
- Empty Miles: Rail transit runs a significant number of empty seat miles. In the a.m. rush, for
example, each train starts at the outer most station with most seats empty. As it heads in more and
more seats are filled and possibly some standees ride the last few miles into the city. Unless the train
is stored near the downtown, it train must then run in the reverse commute direction nearly empty.
The SEGway smart carts however, need not be stored or run out to the farthest station. They can be
distributed to the locations where the electric cars (or containers) enter the system. In the rush
direction all carts are loaded. In the reverse direction more carts are loaded (a higher proportion than
filled seats in reverse commute rail transit). The reason is that SEGway provides egress to or access
from a large area at the suburban end of the commute, where as rail picks you up or lets you off a
finite number of places called stations, which means there are many more reverse commuters using
SEGway than would use rail. While it would take additional research to establish the energy and
environmental impacts of running fewer empty miles, it certainly speaks to efficient utilization of
capital assets.
- With SEGway there is no waiting in the elements for a train to come. Cars should be able to drive on
to Smart Carts with no delay. And even if there is a short delay, the time is spent seated in the comfort
of a car.
- SEGway provides the privacy, security, and comfort of your own car.
- Urban rail transit is radial in the U.S. It always needs a big traffic generator, the downtown, where
walking access and egress is possible. Since SEGway provides its own access and egress, it can
support a network of guideway segments and allow non-radial commutes, which the majority of
commutes are.
Two Close Concepts
The closest concept to SEGway is the Danish RUF system. It is a dual mode system because the electric
car runs both on the current road system and on the guideway. The guideway is “passive,” (i.e., no moving
parts), whereas the SEGway guideway would be considered “active” because the smart carts are actually
part of it. The RUF guideway is an inverted “V” monorail and the electric car has an inverted “V” grove
running under it its full length. The electric car has normal wheels and motors to run on the street and a
second set of motors and wheels in the inverted “V” to run on the guideway. It has to have significant on-
board intelligence to run driverless on the guideway. Thus the cost of the RUF electric car is higher.
Conversely, any electric car—actually any existing light-duty vehicle—can use the SEGway guideway.
Passive guideways are optimal when there are few vehicles; i.e., the guideway is inexpensive and the few
vehicles are expensive. Active guideways are optimal when there are many vehicles per mile of guideway;
i.e., expensive guideway and thousands of less costly cars. The urban situation, at which both RUF and
SEGway are focused, is a many-vehicle situation.
Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) is another close concept, with a passive guideway and an active vehicle. It is
called “personal” because one person or a pre-formed group of up to four people travel in small vehicles
between stations. The vehicle never leaves the guideway so users must access the stations via another
means, usually walking. This results in a very dense guideway network with most residential and
commercial street having guideways above them. This runs the cost of PRT significantly. Whereas,
SEGway’s guideway system is far less dense, about the same density as current urban freeway
networks.
Automated Highway
The Automated Highway concept of linking vehicles electronically so they can travel close together in
platoons in lanes narrower than today’s in order to increase highway capacity would directly compete with
SEGway for funding; i.e., a region probably would not have both. Electric vehicles certainly could be part
of an Automated Highway platoon, but their performance would have to be equal to other vehicles in the
platoon, which most probably means a costly advanced battery. All vehicles in the platoon must have
significant on-board intelligence and communications capability, again running up the cost of the vehicle.
SEGway vehicles are simple electric cars with little or no required intelligence; rather, the smart carts,
guideway, and system control system contains the intelligence.