It’s time to re-imagine public transit. Imagine finding a transit vehicle waiting for you, regardless of what time you arrive at the boarding location. You select a destination such as UCSC McHenry Library or the Capitola Mall. You rise up above the street, traveling nonstop to your destination with a birds-eye view of the mountains, the ocean, and perhaps the rush-hour traffic below. And soon you arrive, relaxed and refreshed from your pleasant journey.

That’s what an elevated Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system could offer, for a mere fraction of the newly estimated $4.28 billion train cost. Since PRT isn’t restricted to railroad tracks, it could replace UCSC shuttle buses while providing direct service to hospitals and Cabrillo College. With service to downtown Santa Cruz, PRT will dramatically reduce the traffic and parking impacts of newly constructed housing and the arena.

PRT consists of electric podcars using a network of dedicated lightweight guideways, separated from the roadways and sidewalks for safety. These autonomous podcars are orchestrated as a system, to avoid traffic jams. The system optimizes capacity through its ability to transport a steady stream of passengers, just as a hose transfers water more smoothly than a bucket. The podcars provide on-demand service, eliminating the inefficiency of nearly empty trains during off-hours.

A PRT system can include a large number of boarding locations with no compromise of travel time. That’s because each station is located off the main travel line, allowing a podcar to stop for passengers without impeding other podcars. Instead of bypassing 41st Avenue (as the latest train proposal would do), a PRT system could serve multiple locations along the entire length of 41st Avenue.

The proposed train would take 40-45 minutes to travel from Pajaro to Natural Bridges at an average speed around 30 mph — the same speed as a typical nonstop PRT ride. But, PRT will offer more boarding locations and reduced wait time compared to a train, improving convenience and reducing the overall travel time for almost any journey that includes our rail corridor. And a high-speed version of PRT could travel even faster.

Elevated PRT has minimal environmental impact and it can co-exist with freight train service, or with a greenway. It can be designed to serve the highest-priority route, possibly Soquel Drive instead of, or in addition to, the rail corridor. It can provide evacuation during a flood, or much-needed transportation with social distancing during a pandemic. It will serve more riders at a much lower cost than a train, reducing fares or possibly covering operating expenses through farebox revenues. And, PRT avoids conflicts with Roaring Camp Railroad.

Early versions of PRT have been in service for 50 years in Morgantown, West Virginia, for 14 years at London Heathrow Airport, and for 12 years in South Korea. To those who say PRT is untested, we might say the same regarding hydrogen-powered trains.

In the past five years, the estimated train cost has increased by nearly a factor of 10, while PRT technology is improving and becoming more affordable. The city of Irvine plans to install Whoosh, an innovative low-cost PRT system that resembles a high-tech gondola. Line Mobility will soon reveal its high-speed PRT system. PRT systems are planned for San Jose, Contra Costa County and Atlanta.

Santa Cruz County should take note of these examples — better than a train, for a fraction of the cost.

Brett Garrett is a Santa Cruz activist who works on issues of climate change, energy justice, transportation and public banking.

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Correction

In a June 24 Guest Commentary authored by Jim Weller about the potential cost of a ZEPRT train, in the fourth paragraph, he wrote the numbers “1,282.7 million” and “$4,283.0 million.” But “million” was incorrectly changed in editing to “billion.” For example, $4,283.0 million = $4.283 billion, which is what the author intended.