Three Innovative Eco-friendly Transportation
Despite Transportation having substantial socioeconomic benefits, it has multiple impacts on the environment, especially in urban areas. It affects water quality, air quality, soil quality, biodiversity, land take and global warming. Transportation became a topic of significant concern to policymakers in both municipal and central government as well as for the urban citizens who need effective and efficient transport systems.
Therefore, global voices are raised to reduce transportation emissions to fight increasing climate changes, through shifting away from fossil fuel-powered vehicles to alternative fueled vehicles and eco-friendly transportation in order to reduce air pollution and achieve sustainable environment.
Nowadays, a lot of innovative means of transportation appear in our world. However, you may think it’s impossible for most ideas to be used in your daily life, but they became real.
Segways EN-V
EN-V refers to Electric Networked-Vehicle of Shanghai. These vehicles have a strange shape like Dyson vacuum cleaners with 2 seats. General Motors and Segway announced EN-V vehicles for the first time in 2009, and were unveiled in Expo 2010.
EN-V has a lot of amazing features, but the most important feature is its autonomous operation, as it can avoid obstacles, pedestrians and vehicles. EN-V also can park itself and come to you when called by phone.
The main disadvantage of EN-V is that it’s maximum speed is 40 k/h, which is very slow compared to ordinary cars.
ELF SOLO
ELF SOLO is a solar-powered bike-car with 3 wheels, and basic amenities of any car such as windshields, a roof, a lockable storage, the essential mirrors, headlights, and many other basic features.
The ELF SOLO first launched by Organic Transit in 2013, with an optional electric and solar-powered motor and a maximum speed of 20 mph.
PRT (Pod Cars)
PRT refers to Passenger Rapid Transport. These pod cars are automated driver-less that will operate by electricity on underground shuttle networks or traditional roadways.
These cars are already operated in Heathrow International airport in London. The installation process of the PRT System there didn’t affect the airport’s operations, as it only needs a small scale of infrastructure to install the system.
Urban Transit and Sustainable Networks Conference
Since the world’s transportation is evolving every day, adopting sustainable transportation systems became a crucial need for our world, so it should be tackled and challenged by researchers and practitioners.
There is an upcoming international conference on “Urban Transit and Sustainable Networks”, to be held in Italy from the 26th to the 29th of October in 2017. You can know more about the conference by checking the following link:
http://www.ierek.com/events/urban-transit-and-sustainable-networks/#introduction