Reinventing travel and making it convenient, cheap and eco-friendly is Sharjah’s (UAE) futuristic, high-speed electric sky pod network. Tsunami Costabir cues you in.
Designed in Belarus by Anatoli Unitsky, a scientist and member of the Russian Cosmonautics Federation, Unitsky String Technologies is building a 2 km suspended track at Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park. A development site at the park already has a working 400 metre track that carries a suspended unicar pod built to withstand the extreme Middle East climate.
From a distance, the sky pod might appear to be cable car-like, but it is miles away in terms of technology. “The ropes and rolling wheels restrict that format to low speeds because of friction and load. This Unitsky string technology is more like a railroad, with wheels rolling on a rail,” said Oleg Zaretskiy, USKY Green Tech’s Chief Executive.
The track will allow suspended pods hanging on a super strong string rail to travel at a speed of 500 kph. The steel-to-steel friction enables it to consume much less energy than cars. It is a power-saving solution with an electrical motor that can be operated partly by solar or wind energy.
The rail itself has guaranteed durability of 100 years, and avoids corrosion by encasing eight pre-stressed wires inside a polymer solution to protect it from harsh environments.
The cargo version would be capable of delivering 12 metre containers at high speeds, taking them off the roads and into the air. An ‘urban light’ track can carry pods of up to 14 passengers at speeds of 150 kph, while larger carriages transport passengers in either 48 or 75-capacity pods at 500 kph.
As the sky pod technology and network grow and evolve in the UAE, it could one day mean a 20-minute commute from Dubai to Abu Dhabi… how great is that?!
The USKY system is much more flexible in route alignment, so is considerably cheaper. Their operating costs are less than half of conventional railway transport, and a third of the costs of building and maintaining a road of a similar distance (depending on the cost of cement and other material in the country).
“We don’t need to build roads or demolish houses like when developing other infrastructure, so we can bring this transport system very close to people’s homes,” the company stated.
Green Outlook
Transportation is still a highly polluting industry in most of the world, and the primary source of emissions of CO₂ and other greenhouse gases. Breakthroughs are being made all over the world with both governments and businesses employing unique technology that will eventually lead to the adoption of more environmentally-friendly transportation systems. It’s amazing to see the role of technology parks in inspiring researchers and entrepreneurs, and techies collaborating to develop better, less-polluting transportation systems.
Sky pods are more than just a mode of transportation. They address various issues like traffic congestion, environmental preservation and energy utilization. The emergency electric batteries in the pods are fuelled mainly by renewable energy, implying that they have a lower carbon footprint than conventional rail travel. Plus, the aerial nature of the pods preserves the open spaces below, allowing for green areas, and development of commercial property and residential real estate.
The UAE is undoubtedly forward-thinking, and the sky pods in Sharjah are yet another example of how exciting innovation here can be!
