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55-610: The Oakland Airport Connector is an automated guideway transit (AGT) system operated by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) between BART's Coliseum station and Oakland International Airport station . The line is colored on BART maps as the Beige Line . The system is integrated into BART's fare system. The line opened for revenue service on November 22, 2014, replacing the AirBART shuttle bus service that had operated since July 1, 1977. Currently operating between two terminal stations,

110-444: A groundbreaking ceremony was held on October 20, 2010, featuring key administrators: BART Director Carole Ward Allen , Congresswoman Barbara Lee , State Assemblyman Sandré Swanson , Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums and Oakland City Councilman Larry Reid. Automated guideway transit AGT covers a wide variety of systems, from limited people mover systems commonly found at airports, to more complex automated train systems like

165-546: A PRT system, known as ULTra , to connect Terminal 5 with the long-term carpark; its full operation began in September 2011. Veolia Transport Veolia Transport (formerly Connex and CGEA Transport ) was the international transport services division of the French-based multinational company Veolia until the 2011 merger that gave rise to Veolia Transdev , later renamed Transdev. Veolia Transport traded under

220-745: A fixture of a number of amusement parks, notably the Walt Disney World Monorail System and the Toronto Zoo Domain Ride . The Getty Center in Los Angeles uses a unique vertically oriented AGT to bring visitors from a parking lot off Interstate 405 to the Center at the top of a hill in Brentwood ; this system places the motor outside the vehicle at the top of the guideway to reduce the weight lifted up

275-575: A joint venture with RATP Group , known as Veolia Transport RATP Asia (VTRA). It was created in July 2009 and absorbed all existing Veolia Transport operating companies and contracts. Veolia Transport's share has since been passed on to Veolia Transdev , with the joint venture renamed RATP Dev Transdev Asia (RDTA). Veolia Transport Chinese Limited (VTCL) started a joint venture with Nanjing Zhongbei to operate bus networks in China in 2008. It operates in: It

330-503: A net operating cost of US$ 860,000 between 2014 and 2016. On July 1, 1977, BART began a shuttle bus service called AirBART that ran to the airport terminals from street level at Coliseum station (thereafter named Coliseum/Oakland Airport). The shuttle ride took ten minutes and cost 50 cents. AirBART was a joint project of BART and the Port of Oakland , which owns and operates the airport. As with other BART-branded connecting buses, AirBART

385-533: A result, Veolia Transport had no more operations in UK by the time of Veolia Transdev's rebranding in 2013. However, since the services in York were taken over by Transdev York (part of the old Transdev ), they still eventually became part of Veolia Transdev and the current Transdev. Veolia Transport Central Europe was a daughter company for Central Europe. It was later passed on to Veolia Transdev and then sold to Arriva in

440-537: A result, the name of CGEA Transport was rebranded Connex in 1999, adopting the brand that its South Central and South Eastern rail franchises in South East England had traded under since 1996. In 2005, as a result of global rebranding of all Veolia Environnement subsidiaries, Connex was renamed Veolia Transport . Some operations such as Connex Melbourne retained the Connex name and logo. In 2007,

495-491: A switched network. AGT was originally developed as a means of providing mass transit services aimed at serving rider loads higher than those that could be served by buses or trams, but smaller than those served by conventional subways . Subways were too expensive to build in areas of lower density, such as smaller cities or the suburbs of larger ones, which often suffer the same gridlock problems as larger cities. Buses could be easily introduced in these areas, but did not offer

550-516: A way to serve outlying areas or as feeders to a metro system. Kobe 's Port Liner is the world's first mass transit AGT, which began operating in 1981. It connects Kobe's main rail station, Sannomiya Station , with the dockyard areas and Kobe Airport to the south. Many similar systems have been built elsewhere in Japan. The Véhicule Automatique Léger (VAL) system in Lille , France , opened in 1983,

605-410: A wheel or slider that was pressed against the guideway rail and steered the running wheels through a linkage. A suspension-like system is needed to smooth out the imperfections in the guideway and provide a comfortable ride. More modern systems can eliminate the rail and replace it with a "virtual" one that is read by sensors on the vehicle without the need for any mechanical connection. AGT systems, and

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660-462: Is four 3-car trains (113 passengers each train), but the system can accommodate an expansion to four 4-car trains (148 passengers each train). The system has four cable loops and one train per cable. The system uses a pinched-loop configuration, with two lines that merge into a single track just before each terminus. Cars switch cables during dwell time at the station. The trains automatically switch cables four times: once at each end, and halfway between

715-487: Is not physically connected with existing BART tracks. Instead it has its own fleet of AGT vehicles that operate on fixed guideways and are cable-drawn . The guideways and Cable Liner vehicles were built by Doppelmayr Cable Car . The line is designed to have an approximate headway of 4.5 minutes (though it is currently operated with a headway of 6 minutes) and to complete a one-way trip in approximately 8 minutes, with an on-time performance of more than 99.5%. The initial setup

770-584: Is now known as Transdev GmbH since March 2015. Veolia Transport Nederland became part of Transdev in March 2011 and was brought under common ownership with Connexxion to form Transdev Nederland. Both continued to operate independently until June 2015 when both were brought under common management. When the Limburg concession expired on 11 December 2016, the remaining Haaglanden operations were rebranded as Connexxion. On 6 May 2011, Veolia Transport Norge

825-736: Is often cited as the first AGT installed to serve an existing urban area. Larger scale INNOVIA advanced rapid transit (ART) systems in Toronto , and Vancouver followed in the next few years, and then the Docklands Light Railway in London . VAL and ART systems have seen continued installations around the world such as in Airport Express in Beijing and have been joined by a variety of new systems with similar features, like

880-783: The AnsaldoBreda Driverless Metro . Automated monorail systems, such as the Innovia Monorail 200 system in Las Vegas , are becoming more common AGT systems. Monorails are less obtrusive because they only require a single, narrow guidebeam. Once limited to larger airports and a small number of metro systems, AGT have undergone something of a renaissance since the late 1990s. Lower capital costs compared to conventional metros have allowed AGT systems to expand quickly, and many of these "small" systems now rival their larger counterparts in any measure. For instance,

935-616: The Vancouver SkyTrain started operations in 1986, but has expanded so rapidly that its track length roughly matches the Toronto subway which pre-dates it by 30 years. Although the original introduction of PRT systems did not result in the widespread adoption as expected, Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit in West Virginia's success, along with a renewed interest in new forms of transit, has led to several new PRT projects since 2000. London Heathrow Airport has installed

990-444: The Vancouver SkyTrain . In the people mover role the term "automated people mover" (APM) is sometimes used, although this distinction is relatively rare because most people movers are automated. Larger systems span a variety of conceptual designs, from subway-like advanced rapid transit (ART) systems to smaller (typically two to six passengers) vehicles known as personal rapid transit (PRT) which offer direct point-to-point travel along

1045-631: The personal rapid transit concept (or "dial-a-cab"), became a major area of research after the publication of the HUD reports in 1968, and subsequent funding by the US Department of Transportation . Political support was particularity strong in states with large concentrations of aerospace companies; with the ending of Project Apollo and the winding down of the Vietnam War , there was concern that these companies would be left with few projects in

1100-587: The 1964 Civil Rights Act. The FTA cited that BART did not complete the necessary analysis to determine if the future change in service would disproportionately impact low-income or minority communities. The FTA forced the Metropolitan Transportation Commission to reallocate the funding. By September 2010, all necessary federal and state funding for the Oakland Airport Connector had been re-established, and

1155-507: The 1970s and 80s. Expecting widespread deployment of PRT systems through the late 1970s and 80s, many of the major US aerospace companies entered the AGT market, including Boeing , LTV and Rohr . Car companies followed suit, including General Motors and Ford . This, in turn, sparked off a wave of similar developments around the world. However, the market for these systems proved to be overestimated, and only one of these US-designed small AGT's

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1210-513: The AGT enters airport property on an elevated guideway. A maintenance and storage facility is located near the midpoint of the system. A two-person team monitors operation of the system from a central control room in the Doolittle Maintenance and Storage Facility . The Airport station's fare gates are located at Coliseum station, between the line's dedicated platform and the elevated walkway above San Leandro Street linking it to

1265-767: The Greater Montreal Area. Connex arrived in the United States in 2001, with the acquisition of Yellow Transportation in Baltimore, Maryland . On September 1, 2005, Connex acquired ATC from National Express , making Connex-ATC the largest privately owned public transportation company in North America. ATC was formed in 1951 and originally owned bus companies before becoming a contractor. In 2006, Connex-ATC changed its name to Veolia Transportation, acquired ShuttlePort, and won several contracts in

1320-495: The Leitner Group, better known for their ski lift systems, provide AGT systems for the airport market. Although the smaller vehicle systems were not successful in the marketplace, larger AGT were simpler to integrate into existing mass transit systems. Many higher capacity AGT systems that looked and operated in a fashion similar to a small subway have since become a common fixture of many existing metro systems, often as

1375-630: The US, including: Veolia employed over 16,000 employees with 6,500 vehicles and a revenue of over $ 1 billion. in 2005 in North America. Its executive team included Mark Joseph ( CEO of VTNA ). It was headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois . Veolia also owns the SuperShuttle shared-ride airport shuttle service, as well as the ExecuCar black car/sedan service. Veolia also operated taxicab services across

1430-682: The airport to increase capacity without spreading out. The LTV Airtrans was another early AGT systems which was installed at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and went into operation in January 1975 (later replaced by the DFW Skylink system in 2005). Similar systems followed at airports around the world, and today they are relatively universal at larger airports, often connecting terminals with distant long-term parking lots. Similar systems were also

1485-552: The base fare for travel on the BART to Oakland International Airport AGT system at US$ 6. The board left open the possibility that temporary promotional fares could be introduced in the future. In addition, seniors , people with disabilities, and children age 12 and under will be eligible for BART's 62.5% discount. As of November 2016, the line operated with a farebox recovery ratio of 96%. This lower-than-expected revenue, in part due to competition from ridesharing companies , resulted in

1540-617: The brand names of Veolia Transportation in North America and Israel, Veolia Transport, Veolia Verkehr in Germany and with the former name Connex preserved in Lebanon , Melbourne (until it ceased operations in 2009) and Jersey (until it ceased operations on 31 December 2012) . Until 2011, Veolia had diverse road and rail operations across the globe, employing 72,000 workers worldwide and serving completely or partly about 40 metropolitan areas with more than 1,000,000 inhabitants. The company

1595-409: The buses. Ridership was about 2,800 per day in 2008, but dropped to 1,900 daily riders by 2014. AirBART service was discontinued on November 22, 2014, when the Oakland Airport Connector opened, though buses were kept on standby for one week in case the new line experienced failures. The buses were then transferred to airport parking shuttle buses to replace diesel buses. The US$ 484 million for funding

1650-428: The capacities or speeds that made them an attractive alternative to car ownership. Cars drive directly from origin to destination, while buses generally work on a hub-and-spoke model that can increase trip times. AGT offered a solution that fit between these extremes. Much of the cost of a subway system is due to the large vehicle sizes, which demand large tunnels, large stations and considerable infrastructure throughout

1705-556: The company has reached a turnover of 1.5 billion shekels a year. After 20 years of investment in the country, Gasquet said the company had never lost a tender due to its commitment to Israel. Despite operational hitches, Veolia stated that there were no political problems with the Arabs or the Jews, and the company was "not ashamed to say that we make money in Israel." After these operations

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1760-600: The exception of Connex Melbourne, the other Veolia Transport operations have since been passed on to Veolia Transdev and grouped to form its Australasian subsidiary Transdev Australasia (together with Veolia Auckland and old Transdev ). Between August 2001 and 2003, Connex also briefly owned 50% of West Coast Railway which operated services between Melbourne and Warrnambool . Veolia Transport Auckland has since been passed on to Veolia Transdev and grouped with Veolia Transport and old Transdev 's Australian operations to form Transdev Australasia . Veolia Transportation

1815-483: The group posted revenues of €5.6 billion, and sold Veolia Cargo , the rail freight branch of Veolia Transport in 2009 to SNCF and Eurotunnel . A merger between Veolia Transport and the old Transdev was announced on 23 July 2009. Transdev was then a subsidiary of Caisse des Dépôts . The merger was completed in March 2011. Veolia Transdev became the world's private-sector leader in sustainable mobility with more than 110,000 employees in 28 countries. Veolia Transdev

1870-567: The hill and thus improve efficiency. Small AGT systems are also used as circulator or feeder systems within urban centers. The city of Miami installed its Metromover system in 1986 and later extended it by 4.4 miles and added 12 new stations it in 1994. Similar INNOVIA APM 100 systems operate in Singapore's Bukit Panjang district and in Guangzhou , China. Over time, the aerospace firms that had initially designed most of these systems left

1925-400: The industry and sold off the AGT divisions to other companies. Most of these were picked up by existing transportation conglomerates, and through additional mergers and buyouts, many of these are today owned by either Siemens or Bombardier . During the same period, a number of new companies entered the field with systems designed solely for these smaller installations. Poma , Doppelmayr and

1980-545: The large tracks needed present a major visual barrier, and the steel-wheels-on-steel-rails are very noisy rounding bends. Headway can be reduced via automation, a technique that was becoming feasible in the 1960s. As the headway is decreased, the size of vehicle needed to transport a given number of passengers per hour also decreases, which, in turn, decreases the infrastructure needed to support these smaller vehicles. Everything from track supports to station size can be reduced, with similar reductions in capital costs. Additionally,

2035-615: The last of its Transdev shares to the Rethmann Group, the owner of Rhenus . Veolia Transport Belgium (VTB) was passed on to Veolia Transdev until it was sold to a consortium consisting of Cube Infrastructure and Gimv in March 2014. These operations were sold to Arriva in October 2007. Veolia Transport Finland Oy has since been passed on to Transdev and has been known as Transdev Finland Oy since 5 February 2015. Veolia Verkehr has since been passed on to Transdev and

2090-400: The lighter vehicles allow for a wider variety of suspension methods, from conventional steel wheels, to rubber tires, air cushion vehicles and maglevs . Since the system has to be automated in order to reduce the headways enough to be worthwhile, by automating the steering as well the operational costs can also be reduced compared to crewed vehicles. One key problem in an automated system is

2145-420: The original platform. Both stations for the line feature platform screen doors – a first for the system. The line is paralleled by AC Transit Route 73, which is less frequent during peak hours but less expensive. Routes 73 and 805 provide overnight service during hours that the Oakland Airport Connector – and the rest of the BART system – are closed. On June 12, 2014, BART's board of directors voted to set

2200-512: The project came from local government funds (US$ 275 million, or 57%), state funds (US$ 79 million, 16%), federal funds (US$ 25 million, 5%), and BART deficit spending (US$ 106 million, 22%). In late 2009, just prior to the award of the contract to construct the system, the project lost US$ 70 million of funding because the US Federal Transit Administration (FTA) found that BART was out of conformance with Title VI of

2255-648: The spring of 2013. Veolia Transport was one of the largest bus operators, operated also one regional railway line and one trolleybus network. Main acquisitions carried out (as Connex) in 2002–2004 ( ČSAD Ostrava, Třinec, Praha-Vršovice, Příbram, DP Teplice), smaller in 2005 (MAD Kolín), 2008 (Nerabus), 2010 (Spojbus) etc. In summer 2008, it changed its trademark from Connex to Veolia Transport. In 2004–2007, several times competed or offered for passenger railway transport, however have got no new job yet. Veolia Transport's more recent operations in East Asia were operated as

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2310-415: The steering system's negotiation of turns in the right-of-way. The simplest solution is to use a rigid guideway, like conventional rails or steel rollercoasters . For lighter AGTs, these solutions were over-specified given the size of the vehicle, so the guideway was often separate from the running surface. Typical solutions used a single light rail embedded in the ground or attached to the guideway wall, with

2365-409: The system includes provisions for an intermediate third station ( Doolittle station ) that may be built at a later date. In 2023, the line had a ridership of 429,900, or about 1,400 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024. The Oakland Airport Connector AGT system is operated by BART and is integrated into BART's existing fare system. However, it does not utilize existing BART rolling stock and it

2420-419: The system. The large vehicles are a side-effect of the need to have considerable space between the vehicles, known as " headway ", for safety reasons due to the limited sightlines in tunnels. Given large headways and limited average speed due to stops, the only way to increase passenger capacity is to increase the size of the vehicle. Capital costs can be reduced by elevating the tracks instead of burying them, but

2475-437: The transport business. Compagnie générale française des transports et entreprises (CGFTE) was also acquired by CGE in the 1980s, was also absorbed into CGEA in 1988. CGE, the ultimate parent company, was later renamed to Vivendi in 1998, and created Vivendi Environnement in 1999 to consolidate its environmental divisions including the transport division. Vivendi Environnement was renamed Veolia Environnement in 2003. As

2530-452: The two stops at the wheelhouse, near the intersection of Hegenberger Road and Airport Access Road. The wheelhouse has four 12-foot (3.7 m) drive wheels that move the cables. The 3.2-mile (5.1 km) AGT route between Oakland Coliseum Station and the airport is mostly elevated, largely in the median of Hegenberger Road, with one underground section as it passes under Doolittle Drive, and one at-grade section just west of that point, before

2585-497: Was constructed as a mass transit system, the Morgantown PRT . Small scaled AGT systems are also known as people movers. Although the mass transit world showed a lack of interest, AGT systems quickly found a number of niche roles that they have continued to fill to this day. Tampa International Airport was the world's first to incorporate an AGT system as an inter-terminal connector in 1971. Its landside/airside set up allows

2640-403: Was established on 1 January 1997 as CGEA Transport , created from the public transport business of Compagnie Générale d'Entreprises Automobiles (CGEA), which was a subsidiary of Compagnie Générale des Eaux (CGE). CGEA was previously acquired by CGE in 1980, and its waste management and environmental services division was already rebranded Onyx Environnement in 1989, leaving CGEA with only

2695-483: Was estimated as 15 minutes. However, travel times and frequency were inconsistent due to traffic congestion from commuters and Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum events. Passengers were required to pay the $ 3 fare with exact change or a $ 3 BART ticket from dedicated fare machines. Because of a dispute between BART and the Port of Oakland about who would pay to modify fare equipment, Clipper Card readers were never installed on

2750-464: Was passed on to Veolia Transdev , the buses in Modi'in were sold to Kavim in July 2013, while the rest were sold to Afikim in September 2013. Connex changed its name to the same as its French parent company's, Veolia , in January 2006. Branding on buses and trains was changed to reflect this position, with the exception of Connex Melbourne . Turnover for Australia was over A$ 635 million. With

2805-724: Was passed to VTRA upon the latter's creation in 2009. Connex operated the Bonifacio Transport Corporation in the Philippines in the early 2000s. It is unknown when exactly did Connex stop operating the bus services. Veolia operates buses in Israel under Veolia Transportation brand. It used to operate with both the Veolia Transportation brand and the Connex brand together in the late 2000s. They operate: In 2012, Denis Gasquet, Veolia's senior executive vice president, visited Israel, where

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2860-500: Was renamed and simplified to Transdev in 2013. In July 2011, amid disappointing financial results, Veolia Environnement announced the launch of new restructuring plans and redeployment of assets and businesses. In December 2011, Veolia announced a €5bn divestment program in 2012 and 2013. As part of this programme, Veolia would divest its participation in Transdev and exit the transport business altogether. In January 2019, Veolia sold

2915-420: Was run by private operators under contract. It was operated by Veolia Transport (Shuttleport) from 2001 to 2012, then by Ampco until 2014. The diesel bus fleet was replaced by compressed natural gas buses around 2008. At the time of replacement, AirBART ran from 5:00am (8:00am on Sundays) to midnight – approximately matching BART operating hours – with nominal headways of ten minutes at most times. Travel time

2970-414: Was sold in a management buyout and renamed Boreal Transport Norge AS . The new owners were Transport Management AS (1.4%) (the management) and Cube Norge AS (98.6%), a subsidiary of Cube Communications Infrastructure S.C.A. (Cube Infrastructure Fund) of Luxembourg . Veolia Transport Sverige AB has since been passed on to Transdev and is now known as Transdev Sverige AB since February 2015. As

3025-555: Was the North American business unit of Veolia Transport It has since been passed on to Transdev and renamed Transdev North America in 2014. In April 2005 Veolia were awarded the contract in York Region in suburban Toronto, Ontario, Canada running the bus rapid transit ( BRT ) naming the routes VIVA and joining with York Region Transit ( YRT ) as a one fare transit system. Veolia also operated transit services in

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