China is notorious for traffic jams and pollution, with no solution in sight. That is until TEB (transit-elevated bus) is launched. Well, maybe.
TEB is a transit monstrosity that straddles two car lanes and is being tested out in the city of Qinhuangdao, Hebei Province, in northeastern China. The elevated “bus” is raised by its left and right sides which glide on tracks, so it actually runs “over” the cars and any congestion in the lanes. Given that 15 of the world’s fifty most congested cities are in China, this would be a big plus.
Because it gets its power from the electric tracks and, potentially, partially from solar energy, it is non-polluting. That’s also a big plus since 25% of the world’s 200 most polluted cities are also in China.
TEB isn’t without its doubters. It’s both too low and too high: low enough underneath that trucks could get caught – tall enough to have problems with bridges. And what about moving around underneath? Anyone never, ever had to swerve to miss something? A tangle with this thing will mean a real monster congestion.
Well, these are just a few of the projected problems, but at least China’s working on some creative solutions. Let’s hope something works…
