SkyTran—a NASA Space Act company—is finally building a pilot of its computer-controlled, two-person high speed maglev transport system. Cars run 20-feet above the ground and can be ordered by a smartphone app.
While the initial trial in Israel will only involve a 1,500-feet closed campus loop, the plan is to build something much larger in the near future. My dream commute just got a little step closer.
Maglev vehicles are levitated and both lift and thrust are produced by electromagnets.
Each skyTran car can carry two-people at over 40 miles per hour and can be ordered by smartphone apps. The cost is anticipated to be less than a taxi-ride.
The skyTran trial is expected to be up and running by the end of 2015. If it is a success, a commercial roll-out in Tel-Aviv and other major global cities may follow.
