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| It's All Over for "Personal Rapid Transit" |
| 11.08.05 (7:07 pm) [edit] |
It's been a clean sweep in Minneapolis. All the PRT/gadgetbahners have been defeated.
The final count
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http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/elections/2005-general -election-summary.HTM" title="http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/elections/2005-general -election-summary.HTM" target="_blank"http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn....
COUNCIL MEMBER - WARD 6 - MPLS
DEAN (Z) ZIMMERMANN . .1,492 49.10%
ROBERT LILLIGREN . . .1,538 50.61%
COUNCIL MEMBER - WARD 9 - MPLS
DAVE BICKING . . . . 1,315 30.50
GARY SCHIFF. . . . . 2,549 59.13
COUNCIL MEMBER - WARD 3 - MPLS
DIANE HOFSTEDE. . . . 2,407 71.19
AARON NEUMANN . . . . 946 27.98
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Zimmermann defeated.
Taxi 2000 suing Ed Anderson...trial set for April 10th , 2006.
PRT is dead, gone, kaput in Minnesota...and so is this blog.
I'd like to thank the Gang of Five and Kenz Army and all the transit activists who sent me information and support.
Good night, Mr. Gow.
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.,
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" Election Day for PRT |
| 11.08.05 (8:14 am) [edit] |
An anonymous reader writes
Only days away from the 6th Ward election"
The election is on the 8th. Are you one of those Republican dirty tricks guys who tells people the wrong polling day? Figures.
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Zimmermann's transportation position paper was released only days ago...from the Zimmermann web site:
"[11.02.05] Position Papers Released" http://www.votedeanzimmermann...
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Why would Zimmermann release his position papers so close to the election?
...and why does he think that Heathrow Airport is in Scotland?
"And it’s not some pipe dream Council Member Dean Zimmermann cooked up. Just this month, Heathrow Airport in Scotland signed a contract to build a PRT system using a technology developed in Wales. http://votedeanzimmermann .org...
Look for the PRT Skeptic Post-Election Wrap-Up Tomorrow!!!
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| Green Party's Zimmermann Renews LUV-POD Vow for Right-Wingers Like Bachmann |
| 11.07.05 (3:21 am) [edit] |
Only days away from the 6th Ward election, Minneapolis Councilman Dean Zimmermann's campaign made it clear that "He doesn’t hate Republicans".
In fact Zimmermann loves Republicans... not the sensible, moderate Republicans, but the rip-snorting, right-wingers like Mark Olson and Michele Bachmann who share his peculiar obsession with PRT.
Find more out at Lloydletta
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" Are Greens Backing Away From Dean Zimmermann? |
| 11.07.05 (3:05 am) [edit] |
Eva Young got the scoop on NJL's husband door-knocking David Strom's house. David Strom is an extreme right-winger who campaigns against Light Rail and transit for the Taxpayers League. http://www.mnforum.org/piperm...
From the Issues List http://www.mnforum.org/piperm...
"Margaret Martin (David Strom's wife) from Ourhouse blog describes a visit
from Natalie Johnson Lee's husband, Travis:" http://www.ourhouseblog.com/?...
"At 07:30 PM 11/6/2005, David Strand wrote:
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Some will see in the election guide in the paper that
there are two candidates who have been awarded
endorsement by Minnesota Lavender Greens.
Minnesota Lavender Greens unanimously endorsed Cam
Gordon and Dave Bicking in their respective races for
city council.
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Interesting. No Lavender Green endorsement for Bob Battle's good buddy,
Natalie Johnson Lee or Dean Zimmermann.
Eva Young
Near North
Minneapolis
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" Scaled Down Taxi 2000 With Scaled Down Expectations
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| 11.06.05 (3:49 pm) [edit] |
What a difference a year makes...
Taxi 2000 (Skyweb Express) Management Team
November 24, 2004 (waybackmachine.org):
J. Edward Anderson, Chairman of the Board & CEO
Mike Lester, President & Chief Operating Officer
Wendell Maddox
Charles R. Michael
Richard L. Ojard
Sarah Lang Sponheim
Trevor A. Westrom
Key personnel ...
Raymond A. MacDonald, Director of Fixed-Facility Engineering
David Maymudes, Software Development
Jeral Poskey, Director of Business Development
Benzi Rosenski, VP of Marketing
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Taxi 2000 Management Team
Now:
Board of Directors ...
Morris J. Anderson, President & Chief Executive Officer
Mike Lester, Vice-President & Chief Operating Officer
Richard L. Ojard
Sarah Lang Sponheim
Trevor A. Westrom, Chairman of the Board
Key personnel ...
David Maymudes, Software Development
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...and the companies goals are so...modest:
The market
Long-term, the market for the SkyWeb Express system is several hundred billion dollars worldwide. On a weekly basis we receive application inquiries from throughout the world (every continent except Antarctica). Taxi 2000 currently enjoys broad-based support from citizen groups throughout the U.S.
Marketing Strategy
As a near-term strategy, SkyWeb Express systems will be difficult to sell. Our experience with customers have shown that cities are risk averse, and politicians are reluctant to be the first to try new technology. This is understandable.
The private sector, however, has approached us without this reluctance. Indeed, certain potential customers have said that they would prefer to be first. This would attract media coverage and give a futuristic flair to their developments, much as Disney’s monorail became an icon synonymous with the park.
We certainly cannot abandon the public market. Strong champions may emerge for our system from inside political bodies. However, our near-term focus will be on small private sector applications. These offer a problem that is simple for our system to manage, a willingness to be first, and a very fast timeline for implementation.
Our sales effort will partly be through the use of our partners. In addition to our manufacturing partners, we have relationships with several companies who are active in the industry, and we are in discussions with other leading firms who also could represent us to potential customers.
Gosh! does this mean we won't get ever get to see Dean Zimmermann's visionary 68-station PRT Project? http://www.cprt.org/Minneapol...
....and what happened to Jeral Poskey?
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" CPRT's David Gow Gives His Readers a Hotfoot |
| 11.06.05 (12:36 pm) [edit] |
From Mr. Gow's blog http://davidgow.tblog.com
"Remember ***'s bizarre claim that PRT doesn't have heaters or air conditioning, seemingly unable to believe it could even be possible?
Well check out the new picture at SoundPRT. Scroll down and put your cursor on the picture of the silver-gray ULTra PRT vehicle. Look under the passenger seat. Why, those look like HVAC vents, don't they!? And look at this photo of the Skyweb interior. Right there, near the floor: another vent!"
If the HVAC vents were placed where Mr. Gow says they are, passengers would get a hotfoot!!! Here in Minnesota, the icebox of the nation, the mercury can drop thirty degrees below zero. When it gets that cold, the heater in a car needs to blast hot air not only at the passengers, but at the windscreen to keep the moisture from condensing and freezing on the surface. A vent placed only at floor level would be very uncomfortable to say the least.
It's easy to see how difficult it would be to keep condensation from freezing on pod's windscreen and melting when the pod warmed up... causing all kinds of moisture-related problems.
There's a simple way to settle this argument about the HVAC system in PRT pods-- Mr. Gow or any other PRTer can request photos and diagrams of the HVAC system of ULTra and Skyweb Express and post them on one of their web sites.
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" Google and LRT |
| 11.06.05 (3:06 am) [edit] |
The PRTers are always saying that rail transit is an "old technology" unsuited for the 21st century. Let's see what the hi-tech folks at Google think...
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Light rail cited as reason for city’s site selection by Google" http://www.lightrailnow.org
The high-tech Internet firm Google – whose online search engine is a familiar tool for millions of users – has announced it's setting up a new engineering center and bringing 600 jobs to the Phoenix urban area ... and Phoenix's light rail transit (LRT) project is part of the reason.
In regard to the location decision, "Which factors played a bigger role is hard to say" comments the Arizona Republic (30 Oct. 2005), citing a variety of factors like lower labor costs; lower state income-tax bills; excellent local educational resources (such as Arizona State Unversity); and a "relatively disaster-free environment, a far cry from the earthquake-prone areas of northern and Southern California."
But, as the Republic reports, other critical factors – including public transportation – were specifically cited by company leaders themselves as reasons for the venture: "Google officials also indicated they liked the direction the state is headed under [Gov.] Napolitano, and of course the infrastructure projects moving forward such as light rail and downtown Phoenix redevelopment."
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" PRT Disinformation Part II and III |
| 11.05.05 (4:35 am) [edit] |
This just in...
"dear sir arab times (houston , tx ) has nothing to do with the arabtimesonline which is published in kuwait."
Maybe Mr. Gow can find a direct link for this story and share it with us.
While you are at it, Mr. Gow, see if you can verify the facts in this story:
Sunday, 9 October, 2005
Up the Creek: Extending Dubai’s trading hub to build a new CBD
"Business Bay itself looks set to be well-served in terms of transport. In addition to the Creek extension (which is likely to promote the use of water taxis), the provision of a Public Rapid Transport (PRT) system is being considered within the masterplan. "
I contacted the editor of this web site and he said the reporter, Zoe Naylor would contact me and verify the stuff about PRT in the article. Zoe Naylor never sent me an e-mail.
Just for fun, Google "Zoe Naylor" http://www.google.com/search?...+naylor
Strange place Dubai... lot's of weird stuff happens there http://www.itp.net/business/f...
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" PRT Disinformation |
| 11.05.05 (2:15 am) [edit] |
The CPRT's David Gow excerpts an article on his blog from a dubious news source that quotes a Parsons Brinckerhoff employee. In this article, the employee, Glen Thorn talks about building a PRT system in Dubai. http://kinetic.seattle.wa.us/...
Gow comments:
"What's amazing about this is that Parsons Brinckerhoff is one of the world's biggest promoters of light rail. A sweet deal: it goes around advising cities to build trains, then turns around and bids on the contracts to design the systems. In one notorious case Parsons, in order to eliminate PRT from consideration by the Cincinnati OKI planning agency, invented its own badly-designed PRT as a straw man.
So what's changed Parsons's mind? Could it just be a rich government finally noticed that buses and trains can't do it all? After 40-odd years since an engineer named Donn Fichter first defined the desirable characteristics of PRT—and 10-15 years since computers, composite materials and magnetic motors made PRT feasible—could it really, really have just been about vision and money?
And lest you wonder why other countries are getting all the good stuff, the Arab Times also reported that— "PB is also currently considering this system as a transit solution for a North American city."
So is the day far off when you can ride a PRT to run errands, or get to & from the light rail station? Cross your fingers."
Mr. Gow better cross his fingers he doesn't get sued. This is what that very same Parsons Brinkerhoff employee, Glen Thorn e-mailed me:
"I am not aware of any PRT system being designed or built in Dubai."
I could not find a direct link to this particular story to the Arab Times web site. Adding further intrigue to this snarky tale of PRT disinformation is the fact that the Arab Times's mailing address is a post office box in Houston Texas http://www.arabtimes.com/
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" Google PRT |
| 11.04.05 (4:05 am) [edit] |
See what happens...
Google "PRT" http://www.google.com/search?...%22PRT%22 . #3... The first and second links don't appear to have anything to do with Personal Rapid Transit.
Google "Personal Rapid Transit" http://www.google.com/search?...%22personal+rapid+transit %22 . PRT is a Joke is #4... ahead of Skyweb Express (Taxi 2000).
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" PRT Critics |
| 11.03.05 (5:20 am) [edit] |
Cartoonist Andy Singer:
"As for PRT, I know it well. Alas, I find it to be totally evil. In theory, it combines the worst features of cars (low capacity) with the worst features of transit, high-tech, capital-intensive infrastructure. It's basically a "Smart Car" on a monorail (but lacks the safety devices found in even a typical car). There are hundreds of problems with it (both theoretically and in reality) but the biggest problem is IT SIMPLY CANNOT BE BUILT...."
Read More Here http://www.roadkillbill.com/P...
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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| "Personal Rapid Transit" Bad News For PRTers? |
| 11.01.05 (8:16 am) [edit] |
Soon... very soon.
Learn more about PRT at the PRT is a Joke web site.
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