Profitability Study of Personal Rapid Transit Networks Through Macroscopic Simulation Approach

While current sustainable transportation solutions struggle to effectively compete with private cars, the need for more decisive change becomes evident. This thesis delves into the concept of Personal Rapid Transit (PRT), an innovative transit solution comprising fully autonomous vehicles operating on dedicated infrastructure. PRT vehicles are compact and offer the same level of privacy and comfort as cars, without their inherent shortcomings. The lightweight and versatile nature of PRT infrastructure allows for easy construction at-grade, underground, or elevated. This thesis examines the financial viability of such systems through a static simulation approach, conducting sensitivity analyses on key factors influencing the transport system. One significant finding is the direct correlation between profitability and "network saturation," a parameter that aggregates crucial aspects of the network and define a sort of proportion among its components. Furthermore, this work includes a profitability analysis conducted on a hypothetical case study of Bologna, Italy, based on a city model proposed by Nguyen et al., emphasizing a superblock-oriented planning approach. The objective of this analysis is to determine optimal strategies for phasing the construction of the network to enhance resilience against unforeseen costs while maximizing profits. It concludes that smaller networks in densely populated areas can effectively finance the future expansion and development of the PRT system.