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MANAGING AIRPORTS TODAY 34 airportbusiness June/July 2015 airport coordination with affected agencies. Regional and local areas should consider the benefits of reducing individual vehicle trips into and around an airport property. Operational challenges must be addressed including how to handle security screening and baggage handling for airport passengers who are using a people mover system at an airport. In an existing operational airport environ- ment, there are significant challenges to consider when integrating this new transit option with current systems. These include design and coor- dination of right-of-ways with passenger facili- ties and traffic congestion in existing facilities. Maintaining reliable service during construction phases involves not only a requirement to address alternatives, but also the development of a con- tingency plan for any impacts to conveyance and processing of passengers. HNTB, which has designed and developed many airport APMs around the country, offers one key lesson it learned along the way. People movers are designed to increase the speed and frequency of conveying passengers on the sys- tem, making the entire travel experience more efficient and pleasant. They should relieve travel anxiety, not add stress to the passenger's journey. GROWTH OF APMS Around the world by last count, there are 46 airports with automated people mover sys- tems already in operation. In North America alone, 23 airport systems are in use and anoth- er four have been proposed: Albuquerque International Sunport; Charlotte-Douglas inter- national Airport; Denver International Airport; and Los Angeles International Airport. HNTB's work on airport automated peo- ple movers includes the Tampa International Airport Master Plan, with recommendation for a $4 billion modernization and expansion including new consolidated rental car facility linked to the main terminal via an automated people mover; Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport's south concourse devel- opment, which includes plans for new midfield concourses served by a second secure APM system in order to serve 153 million annual passengers; and the Minneapolis St. Paul Airport Hiawatha Light Rail Transit Tunnel and Stations, a $112 million project including design and program management services for twin light rail transit tunnels and two new stations—one at-grade and one 65 feet underground. THE FUTURE Given that global airline passengers are expected to rise 31 percent by 2017, automat- ed people mover systems will need to continue moving forward in order to meet imminent needs. These systems will evolve with the development of more airport "cities" that are turning into destinations for doing business as part of the global marketplace and world econ- omies. They will need to efficiently and effec- tively transport passengers not only to and from an airport, but within the campus where business takes place. Historic trends for airport people movers include driverless vehicles that operate on a dedicated track without rails. Personal rapid transit, also called podcar, is a public transport mode featuring small automated driverless vehicles operating on a dedicated track with- out rails. PRT is a type of automated guideway transit (AGT), a class of system which also includes larger vehicles all the way to small subway systems. Future possibilities include automated people mover systems that can integrate with rail and provide more efficient green technologies. At London Heathrow, the personal rapid tran- sit system has a fleet of 21 pods, each capable of carrying four passengers and their luggage at speeds up to 25 mph on the dedicated guideway. The pods are battery-powered, driverless vehicles offering a convenient and efficient way to travel to and from the terminal. Automated Transit Networks (ATN)—in which fully automated vehicles on exclusive, grade-separated guideways provide on-demand, primarily non-stop, origin-to-destination service over an area network--has been around since the 1950s. However, at this time only a few systems are in current operation around the world. This advanced technology may eventually become a viable solution for current and future transit problems in highly populated urban centers. With additional automated people movers opening around the world, it is clear that they continue to be a highly effective passenger con- veyance mode for airports. Looking ahead to the future, airport planners will continue to demand improved mobility, enhanced accessibility and technological advances for automated people movers to be able to meet the needs of tomor- row's airports and their passengers. Aarons is West Division aviation director and as- sociate vice president for HNTB. He has more than 25 years of experience in planning, development, design, program and project management, and construction for airports. Contact him at paarons@ hntb.com. Peter Aarons, HNTB ABOUT THE AUTHOR Automated people movers are transit systems with fully automated, driverless operatons ... capable of carrying 20 to 100 passengers who are mostly standing. The Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport south concourse development includes plans for new mid- field concourses served by a second secure APM system.