Bus tracking in NYC
Big Apple's Buildings Block Bus-Tracking Satellites
Space technology may soon give New York City residents a new-found reason to press that snooze button in the morning. With a state-of-the-art satellite navigation system in the works for the Big Apple’s 4,300 mass transit buses, commuters could save valuable time on the way to their daily destinations. That is, if engineers ever get the system to work.
An $11 million project designed to pinpoint New York City buses with the aid of satellites orbiting Earth is almost two years behind schedule, much to the city’s dismay. The problem? New York’s skyscraper canyons are preventing satellite signals from accurately mapping bus locations on the ground.
We’ve never experienced this problem to such a degree," said David Mathisen, a vice president for Orbital Sciences, the company that is a leader in the satellite navigation business and the contractor for New York’s bus navigation system. "We have 15,000 buses running smoothly in cities around the world, so for us, it’s frustrating."
New York is only one of around 40 cities world-wide that currently have transit satellite systems in place for its riders. In cities such as Chicago and London, accurate bus positions are plotted and displayed at bus stops and transit terminals, so passengers can see exactly when their rides will arrive.
But Manhattan’s forest of tall buildings poses two particularly difficult obstacles to satellite navigation systems for ground-based transportation.
Space technology may soon give New York City residents a new-found reason to press that snooze button in the morning. With a state-of-the-art satellite navigation system in the works for the Big Apple’s 4,300 mass transit buses, commuters could save valuable time on the way to their daily destinations. That is, if engineers ever get the system to work.
An $11 million project designed to pinpoint New York City buses with the aid of satellites orbiting Earth is almost two years behind schedule, much to the city’s dismay. The problem? New York’s skyscraper canyons are preventing satellite signals from accurately mapping bus locations on the ground.
We’ve never experienced this problem to such a degree," said David Mathisen, a vice president for Orbital Sciences, the company that is a leader in the satellite navigation business and the contractor for New York’s bus navigation system. "We have 15,000 buses running smoothly in cities around the world, so for us, it’s frustrating."
New York is only one of around 40 cities world-wide that currently have transit satellite systems in place for its riders. In cities such as Chicago and London, accurate bus positions are plotted and displayed at bus stops and transit terminals, so passengers can see exactly when their rides will arrive.
But Manhattan’s forest of tall buildings poses two particularly difficult obstacles to satellite navigation systems for ground-based transportation.
Ultime modifiche: lunedì, 17 giugno 2013, 17:56