THE MORGANTOWN PERSONAL RAPID TRANSIT SYSTEM : THE IMPACT ON FUTURE PRT SYSTEMS by JEROME

THE MORGANTOWN PERSONAL RAPID TRANSIT SYSTEM: THE IMPACT ON FUTURE PRT SYSTEMS by Jerome Noble Submitted to the Department of Urban Studies and Planning on May 19 in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master in City Planning The focus of this thesis is to attempt, on an exploratory scale, to examine the extent to which the Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit System has been implemented and to assess the anticipated impact of the project on future PRT developments. Although many planners and decision makers continue to approach the problem of urban transportation with the philosophy that conventional transit systems (e.g. bus transit) will relieve the transportation problems in every community, it appears that some of them have finally come around to recognizing that conventional systems are not necessarily the best prescription for providing an acceptable alternative to automobile use in urban areas. Based on this decision, the federal government (i.e., the U.S. Department of Transportation) has invested over $60.0 million in one experimental concept of transporting the public. This concept has come to be known as the Personal Rapid Transit System and is currently located on two of the three campuses of West Virginia University in Morgantown. The following Chapters will examine the Morgantown experience in terms of four specific indicators; 1) Technology, 2) Public Acceptance, 3) Environment, and 4) Cost-effectiveness. -These indicators will be analyzed in terms of the problems and accomplishments encountered by the PRT system and their anticipated impact on future demonstrations of this kind. Because the Morgantown PRT is the first automated-personalized transportation system to be demonstrated in an urban area, the thesis will attempt to focus on the extent to which others have been convinced of its applicability for solving similar transportation problems in other communities. Briefly, the thesis concludes the following; 1) The technical problems and accomplishments of the Morgantown experience have numerous implications, both positive and negative, for future PRT systems; 2) The survey administered to the Morgantown public provides valuable information for