Station Design
An ULTra station is comprised of one or more berths at which a single vehicle docks, allowing passengers to embark or disembark. Each berth can dispatch up to 400 passengers per hour, meaning that a small station can accommodate large numbers of passengers.
An outdoor ULTra station under construction at London Heathrow Airport.
The on-demand nature of ULTra ensures that individual passenger groups have very little waiting time, and hence the stations do not need to accommodate large crowds (although some accumulation of passengers is expected during peak hours). The passenger interface is designed to give a simple and easy method for destination selection, enabling passengers to begin their journey as quickly as possible.
A basic sketch of an offline ULTra station design
Station positioning
Stations may be located above ground, at ground level, below ground, or even directly inside buildings (due to the virtually silent nature of the electric vehicles). The stations are located on offline sidings so that stopped vehicles due not interfere with the throughput of vehicles which wish to bypass the station. On-ramps and off-ramps connect to the main guideway at either end of the station, as illustrated in the sketch on the right.
Stations can be enclosed or open-air, always providing at least a minimal covering above the berth area, and are designed to be suitable for 24-hour operations. The stations are fully accessible to all, meeting access requirements for both the UK and the US. Disability groups have tested the system and commented very favourably on the attractions of the system, and ATS has been involved in discussion with the UK Government mobility groups including DPTAC (Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee) since the start of the design to maximise accessibility by all groups of users.
Plan view of a typical two-berth ULTra station.
For more details on the specifications of the current ULTra station designs, see the specifications page and the "Station Design Guide" downloadable from the link on the right.
Videos
The ULTra passenger experience
ULTra PRT at Heathrow (BAA Animation)
Station Design Guide
- Station_modular_design.pdf (1.4mb pdf file)
A guide to the design of the ULTra stations; this document lays out all the requisite elements in a station, with detailed examples taken from the Heathrow application.