Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit
Encyclopedia
The Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit (WVU PRT) system is a one-of-a-kind people mover
system in Morgantown
, West Virginia
, United States
. The system connects the three Morgantown campuses of West Virginia University
(WVU), as well as the downtown area.
Originally developed as the Alden staRRcar
, the Morgantown system was built, starting in 1970, by a consortium led by Boeing Vertol
as a government-funded experiment in personal rapid transit
(PRT) systems. The system entered operation in 1975 and, except for a short closure for a major expansion, has operated continually with 98.5% reliability for over thirty years.
Although there is some disagreement whether or not the Morgantown system is a "true" PRT system, it remains the only commercially operated example of this class of rapid transit
.
population near 120,000. The city sits in a mountain valley along the Monongahela River
, and as West Virginia University expanded in the 1960s, its geographic constraints forced it to build a second campus two miles (3.2 km) away in Evansdale. Free busing was offered to move students between the campuses, but all the roads led through the city center, creating gridlock
more typical of a megacity.
In the late 1960s, Samy Elias, who led WVU's industrial engineering department, learned of the PRT experiments being carried out in the U.S. after the HUD reports
were published. A minor PRT craze was being set off by a combination of federal funding and estimates that showed a PRT system would be far less expensive to build and install than any other form of mass transit. Elias felt a PRT would be a perfect solution to the traffic problems in the city.
Gathering support from WVU, the city of Morgantown, and West Virginia's congressional delegation, Elias arranged a $50,000 development grant from the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) for a comparative study of three PRT systems, the Monocab, Dashaveyor
and the Alden staRRcar
. The Alden staRRcar was found to be the most suitable system for Morgantown.
Political pressure by Senator Robert Byrd
led Secretary John A. Volpe
of the new United States Department of Transportation
to propose that Morgantown be used as an experimental site for PRT development. President Richard Nixon
had expressed strong support of the PRT concept, and Volpe was trying to arrange to have an experimental system well underway before the next presidential election, in November 1972.
Examining the proposals, the UMTA decided that Alden was far too small to be able to handle the job, and arranged for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
to take over the system management role, signing a contract with them in December 1970. Boeing Vertol was selected to build the vehicles, Bendix Corporation
supplied the control systems, and F. R. Harris Engineering would design and build the guideway, stations, and other facilities.
Numerous problems cropped up as a test system was set up at Boeing's plants, notably the requirement to heat the tracks to melt the snow that collected in the U-shaped guideways, resulting in costly changes to the design. By the time the original deadline rolled around, the system was already massively over-budget and nowhere near ready for buildout. Instead of a feather in Nixon's cap, the system became a political chess piece and was derided in the press as a white elephant
.
It was not until 1974 that the system had matured technically. Construction of the first guideway in Morgantown started that year, and was completed the next. The "Phase I" system consisted of 5.2 miles (8.4 km) of guideway, 45 vehicles, 3 stations and a maintenance/control facility and cost $62 million. There were large cost overruns during the initial development of the system. The system began operations in 1975, with a total expenditure over $60 million, four times the estimate.
There was a later interruption in service during the 1978–1979 school year, to allow for system expansion. During the extension work, WVU provided bus service between the campuses. The expansion added a length from the "Engineering" station towards new stations at "Towers" (dormitories) and the WVU Medical Center/Mountaineer Field
. This expansion, "Phase II", expanded the system to 71 vehicles, 8.65 miles (13.9 km) of guideway, and 5 stations. One station was expanded and a second maintenance facility was added as well. Phase II cost $64 million, bringing the total for the entire system to $130 million.
Morgantown's economy boomed in the 2000s and the city was noted for having the lowest municipal unemployment rate in the U.S. Mayor Ronald Justice, said, "We're a small town with big traffic issues, and the PRT could be the reason we're able to continue our growth."
There have been several proposals to extend the line from both ends. One would extend southward to the new commercial and shopping area being developed as part of a riverfront revitalization project, while a longer extension is being considered to the northwest to connect a new research park. If both extensions were completed, at an estimated $30 to $40 million a mile, the system would be almost doubled in length.
The vehicles feature automatic doors on both sides that open to the platform, and are handicapped-accessible. The cars contain eight fixed seats; four each in a 'U' shape at the front and rear. In the center of the cars is standing room designed for twelve passengers, who are provided with four poles to grasp. Vehicles are designed for a maximum passenger load of twenty. A yearly event called the PRT Cram takes place in which student organizations try to pack as many individuals as possible inside a modified PRT car. The record of 97 was set in 2000.
The cars are powered by three-phase
575-volt
alternating current
rectified to drive a 70 hp direct current
motor. Electric pickups are fixed on both sides of each car, which connect to electrified rails on one, or both, sides of the guideway. The vehicles' wheels steer slightly toward whichever side is powered, so the cars stay in firm electrical contact with the rails. Each car has four-wheel steering to help negotiate the tight turns in the PRT trackways, especially around stations.
The track itself consists of concrete pathways with magnetic induction
loops for providing system data. Due to Morgantown's snowy winter climate, the concrete pathways feature embedded piping containing a glycol solution used to melt snow and ice. Several stations along the track help to heat the glycol solution.
While portions of the PRT track are at or below ground level (35%), much of the system is built on elevated bridges and viaducts (65%). The viaduct spans are approximately 30 feet (9.1 m) in length. There are two distinct styles of viaduct in use on the system, with those constructed for the first phase being noticeably heavier-duty than those built for the second phase extension.
Demand mode operates during off-peak hours and reacts dynamically to rider requests. After pressing the button to call a car, a timer starts. If the timer reaches a predetermined limit, typically 5 minutes, a vehicle is activated to service the request even if no other passengers have requested the same destination. Also, if the number of passengers waiting to travel to the same destination exceeds a predetermined limit, usually 15, a vehicle is immediately activated. In this mode the system operates as a true PRT.
During peak hours, the system switches to schedule mode, which operates the cars on fixed routes of known demand. This lowers the waiting time for a car traveling to a given destination and is more efficient than demand mode. During low-demand periods, the system switches to circulation mode, operating a small number of vehicles that stop at every station, like a bus service. This reduces the number of vehicles traveling on the network.
The PRT was originally controlled by DEC
PDP-11
computers installed in 1971. Due to difficulty in procuring replacement parts, these older computers were replaced in 1997-1998 with Intel Pentium computers.
Since the system's completion in 1975, technology for such systems has advanced considerably, while the control equipment for the Morgantown PRT has changed very little. The control room is said to resemble a NASA
mission control room from the 1970s, though the underlying electronics are more modern. Despite these factors, the overall availability of service (98%) exceeds the original design specification of 96.5% availability.
People mover
A people mover or automated people mover is a fully automated, grade-separated mass transit system.The term is generally used only to describe systems serving relatively small areas such as airports, downtown districts or theme parks, but is sometimes applied to considerably more complex automated...
system in Morgantown
Morgantown, West Virginia
Morgantown is a city in Monongalia County, West Virginia. It is the county seat of Monongalia County. Placed along the banks of the Monongahela River, Morgantown is the largest city in North-Central West Virginia, and the base of the Morgantown metropolitan area...
, West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The system connects the three Morgantown campuses of West Virginia University
West Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...
(WVU), as well as the downtown area.
Originally developed as the Alden staRRcar
Alden staRRcar
The Alden staRRcar, for "Self-Transport Road and Rail Car", was a design for a personal rapid transit system designed by William Alden in the 1960s...
, the Morgantown system was built, starting in 1970, by a consortium led by Boeing Vertol
Boeing Helicopters
Boeing Rotorcraft Systems is a US aircraft manufacturer, now part of Boeing Defense, Space & Security...
as a government-funded experiment in personal rapid transit
Personal rapid transit
Personal rapid transit , also called podcar, is a public transportation mode featuring small automated vehicles operating on a network of specially built guide ways...
(PRT) systems. The system entered operation in 1975 and, except for a short closure for a major expansion, has operated continually with 98.5% reliability for over thirty years.
Although there is some disagreement whether or not the Morgantown system is a "true" PRT system, it remains the only commercially operated example of this class of rapid transit
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
.
History
Genesis
Morgantown is a small city with about 30,000 permanent residents. West Virginia University adds another 28,000 seasonal residents from September through May. Estimates from 2009 place the Morgantown metropolitan areaMorgantown metropolitan area
The Morgantown Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in north-central West Virginia, anchored by the city of Morgantown...
population near 120,000. The city sits in a mountain valley along the Monongahela River
Monongahela River
The Monongahela River is a river on the Allegheny Plateau in north-central West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States...
, and as West Virginia University expanded in the 1960s, its geographic constraints forced it to build a second campus two miles (3.2 km) away in Evansdale. Free busing was offered to move students between the campuses, but all the roads led through the city center, creating gridlock
Gridlock
The term gridlock is defined as "A state of severe road congestion arising when continuous queues of vehicles block an entire network of intersecting streets, bringing traffic in all directions to a complete standstill; a traffic jam of this kind." The term originates from a situation possible in...
more typical of a megacity.
In the late 1960s, Samy Elias, who led WVU's industrial engineering department, learned of the PRT experiments being carried out in the U.S. after the HUD reports
HUD reports
The HUD Reports were a series of studies in mass transit systems, funded by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration department of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development...
were published. A minor PRT craze was being set off by a combination of federal funding and estimates that showed a PRT system would be far less expensive to build and install than any other form of mass transit. Elias felt a PRT would be a perfect solution to the traffic problems in the city.
Gathering support from WVU, the city of Morgantown, and West Virginia's congressional delegation, Elias arranged a $50,000 development grant from the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) for a comparative study of three PRT systems, the Monocab, Dashaveyor
Dashaveyor
The Dashaveyor was an automated guideway transit system developed during the 1960s and '70s.Originally developed by the Dashaveyor Company for moving cargo, the system used motorized palettes that could be routed on the fly to any destination in an extended network...
and the Alden staRRcar
Alden staRRcar
The Alden staRRcar, for "Self-Transport Road and Rail Car", was a design for a personal rapid transit system designed by William Alden in the 1960s...
. The Alden staRRcar was found to be the most suitable system for Morgantown.
Political pressure by Senator Robert Byrd
Robert Byrd
Robert Carlyle Byrd was a United States Senator from West Virginia. A member of the Democratic Party, Byrd served as a U.S. Representative from 1953 until 1959 and as a U.S. Senator from 1959 to 2010...
led Secretary John A. Volpe
John A. Volpe
John Anthony Volpe was the 61st and 63rd Governor of Massachusetts and a U.S. Secretary of Transportation.-Early life and education:Volpe was born in 1908 in Wakefield, Massachusetts. He was the son of Italian immigrants Vito and Filomena , who had come from Abruzzo to Boston's North End in 1905;...
of the new United States Department of Transportation
United States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...
to propose that Morgantown be used as an experimental site for PRT development. President Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
had expressed strong support of the PRT concept, and Volpe was trying to arrange to have an experimental system well underway before the next presidential election, in November 1972.
Examining the proposals, the UMTA decided that Alden was far too small to be able to handle the job, and arranged for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
to take over the system management role, signing a contract with them in December 1970. Boeing Vertol was selected to build the vehicles, Bendix Corporation
Bendix Corporation
The Bendix Corporation was an American manufacturing and engineering company which during various times in its 60 year existence made brake systems, aeronautical hydraulics, avionics, aircraft and automobile fuel control systems, radios, televisions and computers, and which licensed its name for...
supplied the control systems, and F. R. Harris Engineering would design and build the guideway, stations, and other facilities.
Construction
The original estimates for the system were $15 to $20 million. But having set a deadline based on political considerations, rather than technical, the system had to be rushed through to completion as soon as possible. JPL, used to running large engineering projects with a stepped approach, had to abandon the study stage and move the project directly to engineering tests.Numerous problems cropped up as a test system was set up at Boeing's plants, notably the requirement to heat the tracks to melt the snow that collected in the U-shaped guideways, resulting in costly changes to the design. By the time the original deadline rolled around, the system was already massively over-budget and nowhere near ready for buildout. Instead of a feather in Nixon's cap, the system became a political chess piece and was derided in the press as a white elephant
White elephant
A white elephant is an idiom for a valuable but burdensome possession of which its owner cannot dispose and whose cost is out of proportion to its usefulness or worth...
.
It was not until 1974 that the system had matured technically. Construction of the first guideway in Morgantown started that year, and was completed the next. The "Phase I" system consisted of 5.2 miles (8.4 km) of guideway, 45 vehicles, 3 stations and a maintenance/control facility and cost $62 million. There were large cost overruns during the initial development of the system. The system began operations in 1975, with a total expenditure over $60 million, four times the estimate.
There was a later interruption in service during the 1978–1979 school year, to allow for system expansion. During the extension work, WVU provided bus service between the campuses. The expansion added a length from the "Engineering" station towards new stations at "Towers" (dormitories) and the WVU Medical Center/Mountaineer Field
Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium
Mountaineer Field is the football stadium for the West Virginia Mountaineers, an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision team. The stadium is located in Morgantown, West Virginia, on the health sciences campus of West Virginia University....
. This expansion, "Phase II", expanded the system to 71 vehicles, 8.65 miles (13.9 km) of guideway, and 5 stations. One station was expanded and a second maintenance facility was added as well. Phase II cost $64 million, bringing the total for the entire system to $130 million.
In service
Although the system's construction ran far over budget, it proved to be what its designers had claimed: a reliable system of automated transit that was inexpensive to operate. It has offered on-time service rates far better than the bus services it replaced, and eliminated the gridlock that had locked up the city center. Moreover, no injuries have been reported since operation began. From July 2005 to June 2006, about 2.25 million rides were taken on the PRT. As of November 2007, the PRT transports about 16,000 riders per day. The record for most riders in a day is 31,280, set on 21 August 2006. In 2003, about 60% of costs were covered by the 50-cent fares.Morgantown's economy boomed in the 2000s and the city was noted for having the lowest municipal unemployment rate in the U.S. Mayor Ronald Justice, said, "We're a small town with big traffic issues, and the PRT could be the reason we're able to continue our growth."
There have been several proposals to extend the line from both ends. One would extend southward to the new commercial and shopping area being developed as part of a riverfront revitalization project, while a longer extension is being considered to the northwest to connect a new research park. If both extensions were completed, at an estimated $30 to $40 million a mile, the system would be almost doubled in length.
Vehicles
The PRT system includes 73 vehicles resembling miniature buses. They are 15 in 6 in (472.44 cm) long, 8 in 9 in (266.7 cm) high and 6 in 8 in (203.2 cm) wide and weigh 8760 pounds (4 t), powered by a 70 hp motor that allows them to reach 30 miles per hour (48.3 km/h).The vehicles feature automatic doors on both sides that open to the platform, and are handicapped-accessible. The cars contain eight fixed seats; four each in a 'U' shape at the front and rear. In the center of the cars is standing room designed for twelve passengers, who are provided with four poles to grasp. Vehicles are designed for a maximum passenger load of twenty. A yearly event called the PRT Cram takes place in which student organizations try to pack as many individuals as possible inside a modified PRT car. The record of 97 was set in 2000.
The cars are powered by three-phase
Three-phase electric power
Three-phase electric power is a common method of alternating-current electric power generation, transmission, and distribution. It is a type of polyphase system and is the most common method used by grids worldwide to transfer power. It is also used to power large motors and other heavy loads...
575-volt
Volt
The volt is the SI derived unit for electric potential, electric potential difference, and electromotive force. The volt is named in honor of the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta , who invented the voltaic pile, possibly the first chemical battery.- Definition :A single volt is defined as the...
alternating current
Alternating current
In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
rectified to drive a 70 hp direct current
Direct current
Direct current is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by such sources as batteries, thermocouples, solar cells, and commutator-type electric machines of the dynamo type. Direct current may flow in a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through...
motor. Electric pickups are fixed on both sides of each car, which connect to electrified rails on one, or both, sides of the guideway. The vehicles' wheels steer slightly toward whichever side is powered, so the cars stay in firm electrical contact with the rails. Each car has four-wheel steering to help negotiate the tight turns in the PRT trackways, especially around stations.
Route layout
The system connects the University's disjointed campuses with five stations (Walnut, Beechurst, Engineering, Towers, Medical) and an 8.65 mile (13.9 kilometer) track. When a car approaches a station it can either continue straight past, bypassing the station, or the wheels can turn and follow the electrified rails into the station.The track itself consists of concrete pathways with magnetic induction
Magnetic induction
Magnetic induction may refer to one of the following:* Electromagnetic induction* Magnetic field B is sometimes called magnetic induction...
loops for providing system data. Due to Morgantown's snowy winter climate, the concrete pathways feature embedded piping containing a glycol solution used to melt snow and ice. Several stations along the track help to heat the glycol solution.
While portions of the PRT track are at or below ground level (35%), much of the system is built on elevated bridges and viaducts (65%). The viaduct spans are approximately 30 feet (9.1 m) in length. There are two distinct styles of viaduct in use on the system, with those constructed for the first phase being noticeably heavier-duty than those built for the second phase extension.
Modes of operation
The Morgantown system uses automated control and operates in three modes, "demand", "schedule" and "circulation".Demand mode operates during off-peak hours and reacts dynamically to rider requests. After pressing the button to call a car, a timer starts. If the timer reaches a predetermined limit, typically 5 minutes, a vehicle is activated to service the request even if no other passengers have requested the same destination. Also, if the number of passengers waiting to travel to the same destination exceeds a predetermined limit, usually 15, a vehicle is immediately activated. In this mode the system operates as a true PRT.
During peak hours, the system switches to schedule mode, which operates the cars on fixed routes of known demand. This lowers the waiting time for a car traveling to a given destination and is more efficient than demand mode. During low-demand periods, the system switches to circulation mode, operating a small number of vehicles that stop at every station, like a bus service. This reduces the number of vehicles traveling on the network.
The PRT was originally controlled by DEC
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
PDP-11
PDP-11
The PDP-11 was a series of 16-bit minicomputers sold by Digital Equipment Corporation from 1970 into the 1990s, one of a succession of products in the PDP series. The PDP-11 replaced the PDP-8 in many real-time applications, although both product lines lived in parallel for more than 10 years...
computers installed in 1971. Due to difficulty in procuring replacement parts, these older computers were replaced in 1997-1998 with Intel Pentium computers.
Performance
In the 2006 fiscal year, the PRT system broke down a total of 259 times for a total of 65 hours and 42 minutes, out of a total of 3,640 hours and 15 minutes scheduled running time, which equates to about 98% availability. Of those 259 breakdowns, 159 were caused by vehicle-related problems. The PRT system has recently received funding to improve efficiency by reducing this vehicle downtime.Since the system's completion in 1975, technology for such systems has advanced considerably, while the control equipment for the Morgantown PRT has changed very little. The control room is said to resemble a NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
mission control room from the 1970s, though the underlying electronics are more modern. Despite these factors, the overall availability of service (98%) exceeds the original design specification of 96.5% availability.
Operation hours
Morgantown PRT operates chiefly as a student-mover, so it runs primarily during class days. During the Fall and Spring semesters, it operates from 6:30am to 10:15pm weekdays and 9:30am-5:00pm on Saturdays, being closed on Sundays. During the Summer semester, it operates 6:30am-6:15pm weekdays and 9:30am-5:00pm on Saturdays, again being closed on Sundays. The system is closed on holidays and during semester breaks.See also
- List of rapid transit systems
- Duke University Medical CenterDuke University Medical Center Patient Rapid TransitDuke University Medical Center Patient Rapid Transit or Personnel Rapid Transit was an automated people mover system located at the Duke University Medical Center in North Carolina, in the United States. The system was in operation from 1979 to 2009, and service is now discontinued...
, former home of another US PRT system
External links
- Transportation and Parking - Personal Rapid Transit (official WVU PRT page)
- WVU's Campus Map includes PRT Track, Morgantown, West Virginia, US
- Jon Bell's personal PRT page, with pictures, Morgantown, West Virginia, US