From: Sean Kenny (seankenny@blueyonder.co.uk)
Date: Wed Jan 16 2002 - 16:03:31 MST
> Driverless 'taxi' to be unveiled
>
> Cardiff City Council is about to unveil a test track for its Urban Light
> Transport taxi system.
>
> The so-called Ultra is a driverless, personal vehicle which runs on its own
> raised guideway and is activated by a smartcard.
>
I've been on one of the test vehicles - it's really just a 4 seater monorail
train, they stop at a lay-by style "station" about every 1/4 mile if they
sense a passenger waiting. I wasn't very impressed. Same University
department that produced the slug eating/powered robots though, which was
pretty cool.
> A team from Bristol University are developing the project with the help of
> a £1.6 million grant from a French technology group.
>
> The system was created by the university's Professor Martin Lowson who
> previously worked on the moon-landing space programme.
>
> A Cardiff council spokesman says the circular test track has been built on
> land near Cardiff Bay and is about a mile long.
>
> Academics and engineers will test a number of prototype vehicles on the
> circuit to see how well and cheaply it can operate.
>
> Story filed: 20:17 Wednesday 16th January 2002
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