THE EVOLUTION OF CAPACITY ANALYSIS FOR AUTOMATED PEOPLE MOVER SYSTEMS

This paper discusses the progressive development of sophisticated analytical methodology and computer-based tools now being used in the planning and design of Automated People Mover (APM) systems in most airports. Starting with the first estimation of ridership on the Tampa Airport airside shuttle system 30 years ago and the similar but more advanced analysis of the Orlando Airport airside shuttle system, the history of this vital aspect of APM design for airport applications is discussed. Examples of the increasingly more sophisticated analysis tools are traced through airport project work in each of the decades of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and into the new century. The discussion gives examples of ridership and performance/operations analyses within the context of major international airports, both for "airside" secure systems and "landside" non-secure systems. The importance of the flight schedule data, internal airport travel patterns, passenger characteristics, system design parameters, operating assumptions and design constraints are discussed. References to the experience in several airports, including Atlanta Hartsfield, Chicago O'Hare, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Detroit, Paris de Gaulle and Toronto Pearson Airports, are briefly addressed to trace the progressive evolution of the analytical tools. Finally, the latest application of "synchronous simulations" for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is described.