A few years ago, a great idea made the rounds: The sharing economy. Why own something if you could share the ownership – and the costs – with others? The idea permeated the auto industry. Many even saw the end of traditional car ownership. Fast forward to 2023, and that vision has yet to manifest. Car sales are booming around the world. There seems to be no trend towards sharing your car with others. What happened to the great idea of carsharing?
Category: Transportation
Since my childhood, I am fascinated by all kinds of transportation systems. I like to explore how they work, on this planet and on others.
Escalators – who would think of them as a means of public transportation? Usually they are the ones doing the work in the background, carrying us down to the subway or up to the airport terminal. But in Hong Kong, escalators are the stars: Enter the Central Mid-Levels Escalator.
Imagine a city where all cars drive autonomously. In such a city, traffic could flow much more efficiently because a central intelligence could control the cars and interleave them at intersections. Also, you would never have to look for a parking space: Your car could drop you off at your destination and then find a parking space on its own. We are still a long way from fleets of self-driving cars, but the Carfax concept aims to change that by equipping all cars with a self-driving platform.
The people of Ukraine have been fighting Russian aggression for more than 18 months. The Ukrainian railways have played a crucial role in the defense and survival of the state. But how have they managed to do this under constant bombardment by Russian bombs and with shortages of almost everything? In this article, we take a look at what the brave men and women of Ukrainian Railways are doing to overcome these obstacles, and what network operators can learn from them.
Imagine you could have a public transportation system that is faster than a car, cheaper to build than a tram, and has the flexibility of a taxi. The Ottobahn promises to be all that. But can it really square the circle? In this article, we take a closer look at the concept proposed by the Munich-based startup of the same name.
Warren Buffet and James J. Hill – two tycoons of American industry who lived a hundred years apart. Yet they had something in common.
In this article, I explore the connection between one of the greatest capitalists of our time, Warren E. Buffet, and railroad magnate and “Empire Builder” James J. Hill.