Create an Opportunity Assessment for Freedom Mass Transit

Solar Transportation Technology is contracting with a local graduate school to develop an opportunity assessment document. It is not a business plan its purpose is to evaluate and assess the feasibility both technically and commercially. The project / product is a new mode of transportation utilizing self driving electric cars in a nationwide network of solar covered toll roads that power and control high-speed dynamically created chains of vehicles. The toll road is accessed via stations which screens each vehicle before it is allowed into the system. The stations are place about every five miles which allows both local and long distant trips. It is important to understand that unlike all other mass transit systems individual vehicles do not stop at each station, they exit and stop only at the destination station. The promise of this technology is fast, safe, secure, low cost, private travel, in one self-driving vehicle from start to finish.

Trip Example: Four business partners want to celebrate a good month by taking themselves to dinner in San Diego after work from their office in Downtown Los Angles.

Three hours before the trip, they use a cell phone app to call for a small limo type car with beverage service to arrive a the business office at 5:00 pm. The self-driving car arrives at 5:00 pm and the partners get in. The car confirms the trip to Mitch's Seafood restaurant in San Diego. The trip time will be 69 minutes and cost $51.62 for four people, drinks extra. Chronology: Pick up passengers at 5:00 pm, drive to Freedom Mass Transit Station 6 minutes, station time 1 minute, high speed toll road trip 52 minutes, Station exit time 1 minute, travel to restaurant 9 minutes, and arrive at restaurant at 6:10 pm.

Current drive time 2 hours 8 minutes 120 miles

Via train 2 hours 52 min. must leave on the 2:58 pm train arrives in San Diego at 5:50 pm cost $56 each, one-way. Last return train 8:59 pm arrives back in LA at 11:59 pm cost $56 each

Via air over 3 hours and over $900 for 4 people.

The ramifications of such a system are dramatic. Travel times cut up to 70%, 30,000 plus fatalities on our nations highways eliminated, no masses of people for terrorist to target at train stations or airports, no fossil fuels consumed, solar power for electric vehicles, 30% reduction in CO2 emissions nationwide. Other modes of travel cannot compete, no more trains, buses, light-rail, and up to 70% reduction in domestic air travel.

Another example: A trip from New York City to Washington DC currently takes 4 hrs. 55 min. by car on I-95, by Amtrak Regional 3 hrs. 40 min. with a fare of $123.00, by Jet Blue 1 hr. 15 min. add to that travel to the airport, airport check in, security, and boarding time, with a fare of $119.00. A trip on the new system by electric car would be 1 hr. 39 min. with a cost of just $98.94 for the vehicle not per passenger.

The new mass transit system charges users a toll for use of the roadway and for the electrical power used, generating enough money to pay-back the investment and become a new source of tax revenue. If the toll was just 18 cents per mile, the electric fee was 12.3 cents per mile, and the vehicle rental was 12.7 cents per mile then travel fees would be just 43 cents per mile, where gas at $4.50 a gallon it would cost 22.2 cents per mile to travel by car. At 140 mph non-stop travel times would be cut dramatically.

The new mass transit system for electric cars would therefore be much faster than driving or traveling by train and faster than flying if you consider the time going to the airport and the time spent in the airport. Traveling in a private car from start to finish, whenever you want, in self-driving mode, faster and at low cost, should make it the travel mode of choice.

Very high usage could be expected along high traffic corridors, as with example above. The 230 mile route from New York City to Washington DC would have stations every 5 miles picking up both local and long distance commute traffic. An average trip length of 25 miles and 60% of existing highway traffic on I-95 would generate a tax revenue of $1.249 Billion annually. A $10,000 dollar investment in building the public/private grade separated toll roadway would return $2,235.00 annually in this example.

This opportunity assessment is necessary as a project this big and impact-full is hard to get started. It is not just one gadget, it requires government approval and some funding, it is a public private partnership, creating a disruptive new transportation mode. Investment from multiple sources will be required. It will generate very good returns and significant new tax revenue. If 60% of total US traffic used the new nationwide system revenue would be over $882 billion annually with a direct tax revenue of $411 billion. Based on 3.1 trillion US miles driven. Data from Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) for 2015.