The PHX Sky Train is a people mover

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...

 under construction at Sky Harbor International Airport

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located southeast of the central business district of the city of Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States...

 in Phoenix, Arizona

Phoenix, Arizona

Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...

. Shuttle buses along Sky Harbor Boulevard currently connect METRO

METRO Light Rail (Phoenix)

Metro Light Rail is a 32 km light rail line operating in the U.S. state of Arizona. Part of the Valley Metro public transit system, it serves the cities of Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa. Construction began in March 2005; operation started December 27, 2008...

's Airport station (called "44th Street and Washington") with all terminals; these will be replaced by the people mover once it opens.

Sky Train will feature a 100 feet (30.5 m) bridge over the taxiway that connects the north and south runways, the first location in the world where a train will pass over an airplane.

Phase I of construction, underway since December 2008, will link Terminal 4, the East Economy Parking lot, and the 44th Street light rail station (the latter via a moving sidewalk bridge). Eventually, Sky Train will link to all airport terminals and the Rental Car Center. It will run in a new guideway

Automated guideway transit

Automated guideway transit is a fully automated, driverless, grade-separated transit system in which vehicles are automatically guided along a "guideway". The vehicles are often rubber tired, but other systems including steel wheels, air cushion and maglev systems have also been used in experiments...

, using an underpass (below the Union Pacific railroad) which was part of former State Route 153

State Route 153 (Arizona)

State Route 153, also known as SR 153 and the Sky Harbor Expressway, is a former state highway in Maricopa County, in the U.S. state of Arizona, that ran from the intersection of 44th Street and Washington Street in Phoenix south to University Drive. It was a controlled access arterial expressway,...

. Estimated cost was just over $1 billion in 2005, which is close to the cost of the 20-mile METRO line. Sky Train Phase I is to be completed in 2013; Phase II, which connects to Terminals 2 and 3 is scheduled to be open in 2015, and the entire system should be complete by 2020.

Rolling stock will consist of Bombardier Innovia APM 200 vehicles, being Bombardier's second installation in the United States for such model (after the Skylink

Skylink

- External links :* *...

 APM at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport

Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is located between the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, and is the busiest airport in the U.S. state of Texas...

), and third installation worldwide (after DFW's Skylink APM and the Terminal 5 APM at London Heathrow International Airport.)