The Chinese futuristic bus has gained quite a lot of popularity and China has already tested their so-called elevated bus. But can this technological advancement really work?
Experts say that this massive transport vehicle is facing many challenges. Even if these challenges are overcome, it will still be too long until China's congested cities adopt this transportation technology system.
The "elevated bus" is a unique way to encourage people in improving the quality of transportation, said China's transport program director at World Research Institute, Daizong Liu. One problem that this technology would be facing is the turning of vehicles under the bus. Also, if there is an accident it would be difficult to move passengers and vehicles from underneath the bus. Liu added, that safety is the most important, CNN Money reported.
The electric elevated transportation vehicle was designed by TEB Technology to travel the highway over two lanes which allows the cars to pass underneath it. The main goal of the vehicle is to help China with its massive pollution and congestion in its cities.
Experts are worried how the giant contraption should fit into an urban environment. Cramming the bus in an urban highway might mean demolishing buildings, or felling down trees just to lay down the track. The technology could be more suitable to a newer city which is still in its early stages of planning, says Liu.
The height of the bus stands at 4.8 meters to allow movement of cars underneath. Now, this poses a problem since the current height limit of Chinese roadways in only 4.5 meters. Also, there are hundreds of passengers traveling on top of this bus and it could be too heavy for the roads.
The bus stands 4.8 meters high so that cars have room to drive underneath. The current height limit on Chinese roads is 4.5 meters (15 feet), according to state media. And with hundreds of passengers traveling on top, it could be too heavy for the roads.
This idea is now new, however. In fact, a pair of architects proposed a similar idea of a high-straddling vehicle. The proposed "Landliner" would have run between Boston and Washington. The bus would also offers entertainment options along the way and would run at 200 miles per hour. The story was covered during that time in the New York magazine.
