Pangolin

Personal Rapid Transit: Preempting the Need for Oil in Urban Transport

I think one of the most appealing aspects of PRT is that it would allow for delivery of palletized freight pods to downtown stations and large shopping centers. This would greatly reduce the the number of large delivery vehicles on the roads and make bicycling a more favorable option.

Also, Jpod style, suspended rail systems would be cheap enough to run lines out to rural whistlestops instead of maintaining rural roadways in peak condition. This could allow delivery of fresh fruits, vegetables, milk and eggs directly to urban markets without using trucks or drivers. This kind of "milk run" was one of the original functions of electric trolleys at the turn of the last century.

PRT rail systems could be cheaper to install per-mile than maintaining asphalt roadways in rural areas. In California rural counties are already abandoning some asphalt roads and converting them to gravel due to maintenance costs. This isn't going to get better with the fall of Wall Street and the loss of property tax revenues.