Pilotless taxi in a sacred Indian city

India as the poor state not especially associates with “an innovation” word. There it is a lot of the programmers working for the western companies, but the standard of living and society developments is lowest. Nevertheless, this country all the same can brag of technical “pearls”. For example, plans of construction of system of a pilotless taxi in the city of Amritsar.

Amritsar located in the north of India, is a sacred city of sikhs – followers of one of the Indian religions (not to confuse with ominous sikhs from «Star Wars»). This settlement is the large centre of pilgrimage both adherents sikhism, and usual tourists from every corner of the globe, going to look at a so-called Gold Temple. There are such days when to Amritsar arrives to 500 thousand persons, and the system of a municipal transportation with such stream simply does not consult.

Here to solve this problem, the authorities of Amritsar and have decided to construct by 2014th year in this city system of a pilotless taxi which will make a serious competition to traditional cars of a taxi and rickshaws, and also will relieve a city of stoppers.

This system will be precisely constructed by the same principle, as network ULTra at Heathrow airport. Carriages will automatically deliver passengers from station to station on the special paths constructed on platforms. Their call and operation will be carried out also in an automatic mode.

In Amritsar will be created the system from seven stations which will connect railway and bus stations to city centre, a market, parkings and the Gold Temple of sikhs. 200 carriages which will go on it, predictably, can to transport a day before 100 thousand passengers (about third of average quantity of tourists in a city for a day). To each of them they will allow to reduce till 30 minutes on one moving.

And, the price for this innovative system of transport will equal trip costs by a taxi or a rickshaw. The company which has developed system of a pilotless taxi, declares that by 2020th year worldwide will be created about 600 similar transport networks – successful experience of Heathrow airport has led to it of hundred customers.