Additional Whoosh® Details
Whoosh® Network Basics
Check out the video below for an example of how Whoosh® uses the network to select an optimal route for a passenger allowing for a point to point, non-stop journey. The video also shows how a network can be implemented to extend existing transportation options and how easily the network can be expanded.
Is Whoosh® a Gondola?
We love gondolas and what they can do, but make no mistake, Whoosh® is quite different from a conventional gondola system. The big differences are with infrastructure and passenger movement.
With a conventional gondola, cabins are attached to a moving ropeway. The only way to move the cabins is to move the cable, this creates inefficiencies in the system. For example, moving the cable moves every cabin attached to the ropeway which takes more energy and doesn't allow the system to adapt to adjusting ridership needs.
Additionally, the gondola ropeway is largely restricted to straight paths, pulling a clothesline of cabins between two fixed points with few options for a customized route.
By contrast, Whoosh® uses a flexible and expandable network of cable and rail as a static guideway. Whoosh® vehicles are autonomous and move independently throughout a variety of route possibilities and pull-off stations by navigating the stationary network structure.
Whoosh® also reduces energy usage and emissions by only deploying the minimum number of vehicles needed to meet fluctuating ridership demands throughout a day.
Embodied Carbon & Energy Used
Embodied Carbon:
Whoosh® replaces a world of concrete with simple infrastructure combining cables and minimal steel. For added reduction, stations and stops can be designed using materials with less embodied carbon like cross-laminated timber.Whoosh® Guideway / 100 m span
Tower and track 16.6 T of CO2e
Cable 0.4 T of CO2e
Whoosh® Foundation / 100 m span
Concrete and piles 1.4 T of CO2e
184 T of CO2e / km for Whoosh®
Compare that with the findings of a recent study on embodied emissions in rail infrastructure. That statistical model found that overall ~941 (±168) T of CO2e are embodied per kilometer of rail at-grade, and tunneling has 27 (±5) times more embodied GHG per kilometer than at-grade construction.
Energy Used:
Lightweight Whoosh® vehicles move only on-demand, transporting people using ⅙ the energy required of a typical bus or rail system in the U.S. - equivalent to an 75% reduction in energy used.
A Low Cost Modular System
Whoosh® uses a basic static guideway with no moving parts. That means installation time and costs are dramatically reduced - along with reductions for ongoing power and network maintenance needs.
The static nature of the guideway also has advantages when a network needs to expand. New routes can be built right to the edge of the existing network and construction crews can connect them with minimal downtime. A quick enhancement of the control system allows vehicles to discover the expanded network options and start transporting passengers to new destinations.
Delivery Partners
The flexible infrastructure of Whoosh® and the standard kit of parts make creating your transportation network easy. Having a visionary planning and implementation team at the ready makes it even easier. Learn more about who is helping to bring Whoosh® projects to life.
Swyft Cities currently holds the license for Whoosh® in multiple regions, including North America and the Middle East. Additionally, they are currently developing proprietary control systems and visualization tools for Whoosh.
Swyft Cities spun out of Google, and their team has extensive experience delivering large-scale infrastructure and urban mobility projects.
Learn more about Swyft Cities
