Alternative Transportation – Page 11

Alternative Transportation, Aviation, Electric Vehicles, Transportation, Uber

Uber shows its flying car prototype, which looks like a giant drone

June 19, 2018

Uber has unveiled its “flying car” concept aircraft at its second annual Uber Elevate Summit, which showcases prototypes for its fleet of airborne taxis.

The flying cars, which the company hopes to introduce to riders in two to five years, will conduct vertical takeoffs and landings from skyports, air stations on rooftops or the ground. Ultimately, company officials say these skyports will be equipped to handle 200 takeoffs and landings an hour, or one every 24 seconds. At first, the flying cars will be piloted, but the company aims for the aircraft to fly autonomously.

Continue reading… “Uber shows its flying car prototype, which looks like a giant drone”

Alternative Transportation, Business, Electric Vehicles, Money Talk

Electric scooter startup Bird is the fastest company to reach a valuation of $1 billion.

June 18, 2018

Bird, one of many scooter startups currently sweeping the US, was last valued at $400 million after closing $100 million in series B funding in early March. In late May, Bird was reported to be raising $150 million in series C funding led by Sequoia Capital, at a $1 billion valuation.

People familiar with the deal told Quartz that at least three investors involved in that round—Sequoia, Accel, and Tusk Ventures—have already signed documents and wired money to Bird.

Continue reading… “Electric scooter startup Bird is the fastest company to reach a valuation of $1 billion.”

Alternative Transportation, Elon Musk, Science & Technology News, Transportation

Elon Musk’s Boring Company wins Chicago airport high- speed train bid

June 17, 2018

Elon Musk’s Boring Co. is the winner in a bid to build a multibillion-dollar high-speed express train to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. The result gives the young company a big boost in legitimacy as it tries to get transportation projects underway in Los Angeles and Washington.

The company beat out a consortium that included Mott MacDonald, the civil engineering firm that designed a terminal at London’s Heathrow Airport, and JLC Infrastructure, an infrastructure fund backed by former basketball star Earvin “Magic” Johnson, people with knowledge of the matter said. The city is expected to announce the news as soon as Thursday, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly.

Continue reading… “Elon Musk’s Boring Company wins Chicago airport high- speed train bid”

Alternative Transportation, Engineering, Hyperloop, Transportation

Zoetrope effect could render Hyperloop tubes transparent to riders

June 12, 2018

An optical illusion popular in the 19th century could make trips on the Hyperloop appear to take place in a transparent tube. Regularly spaced, narrow windows wouldn’t offer much of a view individually, but if dozens of them pass by every second an effect would be created like that of a zoetrope, allowing passengers to effectively see right through the walls.

It’s an official concept from Virgin Hyperloop One and design house Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), and in fact was teased back in 2016. Now the companies have shared a video showing how it would work and what it would look like for passengers — though there’s no indication it would actually be put in place in the first tracks.

Continue reading… “Zoetrope effect could render Hyperloop tubes transparent to riders”

Alternative Transportation, Aviation, Google, Transportation

The flying car backed by Google’s cofounder just got a big update, and people can pilot it with less than an hour’s training

June 10, 2018

Kitty Hawk, the mysterious flying-car startup funded by the Google cofounder Larry Page, unwrapped its updated vehicle on Wednesday.

The Flyer is now open for test flights for prospective customers, and the CNN reporter Rachel Crane was the first journalist allowed to pilot the vehicle.

Kitty Hawk promises to get people in the air in less than an hour because of the Flyer’s simple control system, which comprises just two joysticks.

The startup’s CEO said that securing public acceptance for the Flyer is its biggest priority and that he hopes to learn a lot from the test flights.

Continue reading… “The flying car backed by Google’s cofounder just got a big update, and people can pilot it with less than an hour’s training”

Alternative Transportation, Elon Musk, Engineering, Future, Hyperloop

New hyperloop photos show capsule’s sleek, windowless interior

May 23, 2018

Mock-up of a futuristic transportation pod looks a bit like the cabin of an airliner, but with a crucial difference.

The Virgin Hyperloop One mock-up has luxury touches but no windows.BMW Designworks.

If you’ve ever wondered what the inside of a hyperloop capsule might look like, you’re in luck.

Continue reading… “New hyperloop photos show capsule’s sleek, windowless interior”

Alternative Transportation, Aviation, Uber

Here are the most amazing flying car designs featured at Uber’s elevate conference

May 12, 2018

Aircraft makers—from multinational giants to garage startups—offer a crazy variety of visions for air taxis that Uber might use.

The early days of flight saw a huge variety of designs—featuring oddities like planes with what we now call the “tail” in the front of the vehicle. After a few decades, the industry settled on the standard forms we recognize today based on cost and efficiency. But today electric technologies have made it possible to widen the space of what’s possible in terms of style, design, and material. “We’re at the same exciting period where we’re like, ‘Well, what is this supposed to look like?’” says Mark Moore, director of engineering, vehicle systems for the Uber Elevate air taxi program. “And no one, including myself, really knows the answer.”

Continue reading… “Here are the most amazing flying car designs featured at Uber’s elevate conference”

Alternative Transportation, Architecture, City Planning, Uber

These Uber Air ‘Skyport’ concepts look straight out of Star Wars

May 12, 2018

If Uber is to get its “flying taxi” service off the ground, it will need dozens of launchpads and landing sites on rooftops around cities as a supportive infrastructure. At the ride-hailing company’s second annual Elevate conference in Los Angeles, six architecture firms presented their winning designs of what these so-called “Skyports” could look like. And holy cow, these things look straight out of Star Wars.

Continue reading… “These Uber Air ‘Skyport’ concepts look straight out of Star Wars”

Alternative Transportation, Animals, Business, Transportation, Uber

Shared mobility is growing, but the ride-sharing economy still has a long way to go

April 20, 2018

If you live in a US city, car-sharing services like Lyft and Uber might seem omnipresent. However, the ride-sharing economy still has a ways to go, at least according to consumer sentiment.

Continue reading… “Shared mobility is growing, but the ride-sharing economy still has a long way to go”

Alternative Transportation, App, Science & Technology News, Uber

Uber is launching a rental car service inside its app

April 17, 2018

Uber is launching a rental car network in partnership with Getaround, the ride-hailing company announced today (April 11).

San Francisco-based Getaround lets users find and instantly book vehicles from private car owners, all through a mobile app. The new Uber Rent platform, which is scheduled to launch later this month in San Francisco, will make cars from Getaround’s network available to users of the Uber app.

Continue reading… “Uber is launching a rental car service inside its app”

Alternative Transportation, Automobiles, Driverless cars, Electric Automobile

Who’s really going to own autonomous cars?

April 7, 2018

Two mega trends are coming together: The Collaborative Economy and the Autonomous World, which means shared mobility from self-driving cars.

Early this year, we published a research report on the Business Models of Self-Driving Cars, and we’ve presented our findings at a number of industry events. A commonly asked question is: “In the future, will we even own cars?” I want to share a few scenarios that are likely to emerge.

Continue reading… “Who’s really going to own autonomous cars?”

Alternative Transportation, Elon Musk, Ideas, Mass Transit

Boring Company will prioritize pedestrian transportation over cars, says Musk

March 18, 2018

When Elon Musk first unveiled The Boring Company, its plan was to create a network of underground tunnels used to transport vehicles at high speeds to help bypass and eliminate traffic. Now the founder has come out with an updated vision, saying that The Boring Company’s tunnels will first focus on transporting pedestrians and cyclists first, essentially serving as a new form of mass transit, before it begins moving personal vehicles.

Continue reading… “Boring Company will prioritize pedestrian transportation over cars, says Musk”