A scale-model of the TEB was unveiled at the 19th China Beijing International High-Tech Expo, held over the weekend. The Chinese company behind the concept says it is designed to take the place of subways, light rail and buses.
The elevated bus will have passengers riding in comfort above the traffic, traveling at 37 mph, with stops along the route similar to subway stations. The TEB runs on rails embedded along the sides of the road, much like a tram, and sits high enough to pass over vehicles safely, says the International Business Times.
The TEB is also environmentally-friendly, powered by electricity and solar panels embedded in the roof of the vehicle. The hope is that the TEB will ease the insanely heavy traffic congestion, a problem that has gotten out of control in China. Last year thousands of motorists were left stranded on a 50 lane Chinese motorway during a long weekend traffic jam.
The cost of the project was not made clear, but Bai Zhiming, the engineer in charge of the TEB project spoke with CCTV, and says the cost of construction is less than one-fifth that of building a subway
system. “Its construction can be finished in one year,” he added. Bai also says the TEB has a carrying capacity of 1,200 passengers.
There are still safety questions that need to be addressed, such as any threat of potential collision with cars, cyclists and pedestrians. The height at which it will pass over vehicles is another problem that raises the question of whether the roads it uses will be only limited to cars.
What about tractor-trailers and delivery vans? many people asked after viewing the video on YouTube reports News.com.au. Mason Mason wrote: “Baaaaaad idea. I KNOW accidents will occur within three hours from this happening, simply due to those people not paying attention and going off lane because texting or whatever other reason.”
A full-scale model is under construction in Qinhuangdao City in Northern China, with feasibility testing expected to begin in July.