PRT is a Better Solution:

PRT (personal rapid transit) is an electric, 200-mpg-equivalent, elevated transit system with many 3 to 5-person vehicles. First deployment of the ULTra PRT system is scheduled for London Heathrow Airport (the world's third largest airport) in Spring 2010, to serve Heathrow's new Terminal 5. Working as circulator transit for airports, office parks, universities, and other major activity centers, PRT is faster than a car. In these applications, PRT makes BART and AC Transit more effective, by solving the "last mile problem." PRT system proposals are advancing for San Jose Airport, Alameda Point, Santa Cruz, and Virginia. A 3-minute PRT explanation video and Heathrow PRT tour can be found at: http://www.ultraprt.com/. 

David Holdcroft, Heathrow Terminal 5 ULTra PRT Project Manager: "This innovative system forms part of BAA's [formerly British Airports Authority] plan to transform Heathrow, improve the passenger experience and reduce the environmental impact of our operation through the development of cutting edge, green transport solutions. It offers a completely new form of public transport - one that will deliver a fast, efficient service to passengers and bring considerable environmental benefits, saving more than half of the fuel used by existing forms of public or private transport."

One of the advantages of a PRT network "is that it offers a lot of flexibility. It's much less expensive than traditional transit. It doesn't serve the same needs as high-speed rail or BART. It's a complement to those systems," Laura Stuchinksy, Sustainability Officer, City of San Jose Department of Transportation.

"We've concocted a system where local trips take an auto. That's our biggest tragedy. Streetcars, such as those used in Portland's Pearl District, and elevated people movers, like those in downtown Miami, are moving people from rail stations to their final destinations. But a new concept, PRT, may help revolutionize urban transportation, providing a cost-effective way to get people from train stations to where they need to go." - Peter Calthorpe, Berkeley-based Calthorpe Associates (Alameda Point, etc).

Oakland power-developer Phil Tagami is also a fan of PRT for Oakland Airport, as reported in the SF Business Times in September, 2008.

PRT is faster than a car:

• PRT trip time to/from Airport Terminal 1 to Coliseum BART: 0:20 sec wait + 6:20 PRT trip time (3.0 mile journey @ 30 mph).

• Estimated "light traffic" driving time from Coliseum BART to Oakland Airport Terminal 1 is 12 minutes, plus additional time spent parking and walking.  

APMs are Eyesores

APMs are massive, ugly elevated structures that block out the sun. Measuring cross section, they block out 30' of sun. PRT is more suited to blending in with Oakland surroundings, with a grid guideway that lets sunlight through, blocking out less than two cross sectional feet of sun:

APM cross section                                      PRT low-sunlight-occlusion grid guideway