Autonomous Rail Rapid Transit (ART) is a LiDAR guided articulated bus system for urban passenger transport. Developed by CRRC Zhuzhou Institute Co Ltd, it was unveiled in

Zhuzhou Zhuzhou (, ), formerly Jianning (建宁), is a prefecture-level city of Hunan Province, China, straddling the Xiang River southeast of the provincial capital, Changsha, and bordering Jiangxi province to the east. It is part of the " Greater Chan ...

in the

Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi ...

province on June 2, 2017. ART has been described as a combination between a

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

and a

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...

- often called a "trackless tram". Its exterior is composed of individual fixed sections joined by

articulated An articulated vehicle is a vehicle which has a permanent or semi-permanent pivot joint in its construction, allowing it to turn more sharply. There are many kinds, from heavy equipment to buses, trams and trains. Steam locomotives were sometim ...

gangways, resembling a rubber-tyred tram. The system is labelled as "autonomous" in English, however, the models in operation are optically guided and feature a driver on board.

Background

Before the announcement by CRRC, optical guided buses have been in use in a number of cities in Europe and North America, including in Rouen as part of Transport Est-Ouest Rouennais, in Las Vegas as a segment of Metropolitan Area Express BRT service (now discontinued), and in

Castellón de la Plana Castellón de la Plana (officially in ca-valencia, Castelló de la Plana), or simply Castellón ( ca-valencia, Castelló, link=no) is the capital city of the province of Castellón, in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is located in the east ...

as . The guidance system technology used on these systems was called Visée under their original developer Matra, and is now named Optiguide after being acquired by Siemens.

Description

An ART bus with three carriages is approximately long and costs approximately 15 million yuan (US$2.2 million) to build. It can travel at a speed of and can carry up to 300 passengers. A five-carriage bus provides space for 500 passengers. A four carriage model was introduced in 2021 which can carry 320 passengers. Two buses can closely follow each other without being mechanically connected, similarly to multiple unit train control.Ken Huang
ART 宣传视频2017.
5 April 2017. Downloaded on 22 July 2017. The entire ART has a low-floor design from a space frame with bolted-on panels to support the weight of passengers. It is built as a

bi-directional vehicle A bi-directional vehicle is a vehicle that can be driven in either direction, forwards or backwards. Usually, the term refers to rail vehicles, such as trains or trams, and some airside transfer buses, that are equipped with driver's cabs a ...

, with driver's cabs at either end, allowing it to travel in either direction at full speed. The long ART lane was built through downtown Zhuzhou and inaugurated in 2018.

Sensors and batteries

The ART is equipped with various optical and other types of sensors to allow the vehicle to automatically follow a route defined by a virtual track of markings on the roadway. A steering wheel also allows the driver to manually guide the vehicle, including around detours.Vocativ
This Train Runs On Virtual Tracks.
China Central Television (CCTV), 6 June 2017. Downloaded on 22 July 2017. A ''Lane Departure Warning System'' helps to keep the vehicle in its lane and automatically warns, if it drifts away from the lane. A ''Collision Warning System'' supports the driver on keeping a safe distance with other vehicles on the road and if the proximity reduces below a given level, it alerts the driver by a warning sign. The ''Route Change Authorization'' is a navigation device, which analyzes the traffic conditions on the chosen route and can recommend a detour to avoid traffic congestion. The ''Electronic Rearview Mirrors'' work with remotely adjustable cameras and provide a clearer view than conventional mirrors, including an auto dimming device to reduce the glare. The ART is powered by lithium–titanate batteries and can travel a distance of per full charge. The batteries can be recharged via

current collector Electric current collectors are used by trolleybuses, trams, electric locomotives or EMUs to carry electrical power from overhead lines, electrical third rails, or ground-level power supplies to the electrical equipment of the vehicles. Those for ...

s at stations.World's first train running on virtual tracks released.
New China TV, 2 June 2017. Downloaded on 22 July 2017. The recharging time for a trip is 30 seconds and for a trip, 10 minutes.

Benefits and limitations

A 2018 article by a sustainability academic argued trackless trams could replace both light-rail and bus rapid transit due to low cost, quick installation and low emissions. Others have disputed the claims about cost and quick installations, and argued that ART is a proprietary technology with little deployment worldwide. Other experts have argued the technology is overhyped, that optical guidance technology is not new, and that current proposals largely represent a repackaging of the bus as a rail-replacement technology. As of 2022 there are no systems outside of China and few proposals. That may be because: *The system is not autonomous *The system is not rail based and so has the ride qualities of a bus *The vehicles can get stuck in road traffic, meaning that it is not true rapid transit. *Being a " gadgetbahn", the required vehicles cannot be bought through competitive tender. Proponents have argued the lack of rails means cheaper construction costs. Multi-axle hydraulic steering technology and bogie-like wheel arrangement could allow lower swept path in turns, thus requiring less side clearance. The minimum

turning radius The turning diameter of a vehicle is the minimum diameter (or "width") of available space required for that vehicle to make a circular turn (i.e. U-turn). The term thus refers to a theoretical minimal circle in which for example an aeroplane, a g ...

of is similar to buses. Yibin ART System 10 11 39 116000

However, because the ART is a guided system, ruts and depressions could be worn into the road by the alignment of the large number of wheels, so reinforcement of the roadway to prevent those problems may be as disruptive as the installation of rails in a light rail system. Researchers in 2021 found evidence of significant road wear due to trackless tram vehicles, which undermined claims of quick construction, with the researchers finding significant road strengthening was required by the technology. The suitability of the system for winter climates with ice and snow has not yet been proven. The higher rolling resistance of rubber tires requires more energy for propulsion than the steel wheels of a light rail vehicle. A few abandoned proposals for light-rail lines have been revived as ART proposals because of the lower projected costs. However, a different report, by the Australian Railways Association, which supports light rail, said there were reliability questions with ART installations, implying the initial suggested capital cost savings were illusory. A November 2020 proposal for a trackless tram system in the

City of Wyndham The City of Wyndham is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the outer south-western suburbs of Melbourne, within the Melbourne Metropolitan Area, between Melbourne and the regional city of Geelong. It has an area of . The city had a ...

, near Melbourne, posited a cost of $AU23.53M per km for roadworks, vehicles, recharge point and depots. Recently completed light rail systems in Australia have had costs of between $AU80M and $AU150M per km. The Government of New South Wales considered the system as an alternative to light rail for a line to connect Sydney Olympic Park to

Parramatta Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...

. However, concerns were raised that there was only one supplier of the technology, and that the development of "long articulated buses" was "too much in its preliminary phase" to meet the project deadlines. Instead, the plan was to build a light-rail line which would connect to another light-rail route already under construction, so passengers would not have to change vehicles. The Auckland Light Rail Group, in its studies of trackless trams for the City Centre to Mangere line, found that trackless trams would have a lower capacity than claimed. The official specifications for the ARRT assume a standing density of eight passengers per square meter, whereas many transit systems have more typical standing densities of four passengers per square meter. Based on that, the 32-meter long ARRT would more realistically have a capacity of 170 passengers, rather than the claimed 307. This would be only a slight increase over the typical capacity of conventional bi-articulated buses at the same passenger density (~150 passengers), and less than a typical 33m long LRV (~210-225 passengers).

List of commercially operating lines

} , style="text-align:center" , Zhuzhou ART , style="text-align:center" ,

, style="text-align:center" , , style="text-align:center" , 4 , style="text-align:center" , 2018-05-18 , - , Line A2 zh, 智能轨道快运A2线 , style="text-align:center" , Zhuzhou ART , style="text-align:center" ,

, style="text-align:center" , , style="text-align:center" , 7 + 1 (temporary) , style="text-align:center" , 2021-03-30 , - , Line T1 zh, 智轨T1线 , style="text-align:center" , Yibin ART , style="text-align:center" ,

Yibin Yibin (; Sichuanese Pinyin: nyi2bin1; Sichuanese pronunciation: ) is a prefecture-level city in the southeastern part of Sichuan province, China, located at the junction of the Min and Yangtze Rivers. Its population was 4,588,804 inhabitants, a ...

, style="text-align:center" , , style="text-align:center" , 16 , style="text-align:center" , 2019-12-05 , - ! colspan="8" , Systems in trial operation , - , SRT Line 1 , style="text-align:center" , Yancheng District SRT , style="text-align:center" ,

Yancheng Yancheng () is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China. As the city with the largest jurisdictional area in Jiangsu, Yancheng borders Lianyungang to the north, Huai'an to the west, Yangzhou and Taiz ...

, style="text-align:center" , , style="text-align:center" , 17 , style="text-align:center" , 2021-04-16 , - , unknown , style="text-align:center" , Yongxiu ART , style="text-align:center" , Yongxiu , style="text-align:center" ,
(total planned ) , style="text-align:center" , 4 , style="text-align:center" , 2019-03-20

Proposed systems

Proposals, including vehicle testing, have been made in several countries. * China,

Changsha Changsha (; ; ; Changshanese pronunciation: (), Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is the Capital city, capital and the largest city of Hunan Province of China. Changsha is the 17th most populous city in China with a popul ...

. Changsha Meixi Lake to Changsha Municipal Government line, reported to start construction in 2021 for completion in 2022 * China, Harbin. In May 2021 testing of a vehicle was underway with plans for an route with 11 stations. There are reports that stations have been constructed in January 2021 and trial operations will commence in August 2021. * China,

Tongli Tongli, alternately Tong-Li (; Wu: Don li, ) is a town in Wujiang district, on the outskirts of Suzhou, Jiangsu province. It is known for a system of canals, it has been given the nickname "Venice of the East". The place retains many of the f ...

. As of February 2021 testing was underway with the service expected to open to passengers by the end of 2021. * China,

Xi'an Xi'an ( , ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by other names, is the capital of Shaanxi Province. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong Plain, the city is the third most populous city in Western China, after Chongqi ...

. Two routes. One with 18 stations over and second with 9 stations over . *

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. Iskandar Malaysia Bus Rapid Transit in

Johor Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares maritime ...

. ART is one technology under consideration for the corridor. A three-month test of an ART vehicle, along with eight other bus types, began in April 2021. *

. The three line Kuching LRT project was proposed as a light-rail in 2018, but shelved due to costs. In 2019 ART announced ART technology had been selected instead, due to its lower costs for similar levels of service. As of July 2021 the project has not commenced construction. *

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...

. The system was considered for use during the 2022 FIFA World Cup, but was not pursued. In July 2019 a two-week test with one vehicle was undertaken in

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the count ...

, the first trial outside China. * Australia,

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. In March 2021, the Australian Government provided $2 million to produce a business case to investigate a trackless tram on Scarborough Beach Road between the Stirling City Centre and the

Perth CBD Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

References

{{reflist Guided bus Self-driving cars Bus rapid transit in China