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.{{ double-space-with-newline }}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.
The German Railway Museum in Nuremberg is currently showing the special exhibition “Futurails”. It shows how many alternatives to the railway system have been discussed over the course of 200 years. With an excellent selection of exhibits, it gives the visitor an idea of all the ideas that clever people have come up with, and tries to explain why the railroad still looks pretty much the same 200 years later.
The IAA Mobility 2023 is over. What was on display besides the ubiquitous electric cars? Here is my personal review of one of the world’s biggest mobility shows.
Two of the automotive buzzwords of recent years have been vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications. They promise greater safety for drivers. They also promise greater convenience and better traffic flow. But this technology has been a long time in the making. Where do we stand with these promises, and will they become reality any time soon?
Today, submarines are mainly used for military and research purposes. But future developments could make it possible for submarines to travel at many times the speed of sound. Would that make them an attractive mode of transportation for passengers traveling around the world?
Travel around the globe at 7,200 km/h. From London to New York in less than an hour. And all by train, not by plane. This is the proposed concept of the “Hypersonic Train” that German engineer Andreas Scholz describes in his new book “The Hypersonic Railway”.
“Tea: Earl Grey, hot!” This is one of Captain Jean Luc Picard’s most famous quotes from the Star Trek television series.{{ double-space-with-newline }}A few seconds later, a cup of steaming tea materializes in the “Replicator” and Captain Picard can enjoy it.{{ double-space-with-newline }}The replicator can produce not only tea, but all kinds of drinks, food and contraptions. What if we could really build such a Replicator and everyone had one at home, just like the crew of the Enterprise?
Beam me up, Scotty! Even non-Trekkies know this (mis)quote from Star Trek. It reminds us of the effortless way of traveling that Captain Kirk and his crew enjoy: Teleportation.{{ double-space-with-newline }}It sounds like science fiction, but what if it were really possible? What would the implications be for our daily lives and mobility? Join me on a hypothetical journey into a very distant future of transportation.
Automated Valet Parking - this is a buzzword that appears frequently in the media these days. Press releases from companies promise that we will soon be freed from the task of finding a parking space in a garage. In the future, we will simply leave our cars at the entrance and they will be parked automatically. There are many different technologies competing for this future market. Where do we stand in this evolution? In this article, I will try to give an overview of the current state of the technology.