Revolutionary Train Of Thought
Even though public heathers have been installed at several train stations, there is a more revolutionary approach to avoid waiting at an utterly cold platform. Paul Priestman, director of the British design group Priestmangoode, argues that the concept of ‘moving platforms’ will take rail transport into the 21st century. This futuristic idea aims to connect train services in a physical way, which enables passengers to change trains on the move. Many ordinary and static platforms may become old-fashioned and even redundant, if this bold view turns into reality. The following animation shows how it could work:
Such a sophisticated system could offer more convenient train journeys and increased connectivity between cities. As Priestman explains:
“If you were going on holiday or on business for instance, you could get onto a tram on your street and then seamlessly travel from that onto the high-speed line and then get off at your destination in another city, then onto a tram and then end up at your destination without ever having gone in your car or perhaps got on a bus.”
It strikes me that the brilliant notion of moving platforms comes rather late. At least in Europe, the existing railway network seems not prepared for such a change, which would mean more than a few minutes delay. In Asian cities, however, the experiment remains interesting and is worth trying for cities to be planned from scratch. Many Dutch train stations are being refurbished without rethinking the transport system thoroughly. Let’s see if another city takes up the challenge to create moving platforms. Needless to say, I would not want to miss that train.
