Cross-water transportation in cities often means driving over a busy bridge or using designated ferries that are typically slow and not the most easily accessible. But what if there was a better alternative, such as having on-demand electric water taxis that allow for a greener and faster travel?
Well, that could soon become a reality thanks to startup CrossWater that has developed a self-driving capsule, or what it calls a “horizontal elevator”, with the primary purpose of making point-to-point cross-water travel cheaper, faster, safer, and more convenient.
Carrying up to 15 users at a time, the watercraft transports people across stretches of water from one platform to the other. Aiming to reduce congestion on roads and bridges, and increase the utilization of inland waterways, the autonomous taxi is designed to work on rivers, lakes, islands, and canals.
What’s more, according to the inventors, CrossWater would allow for 10 times faster travel across rivers and lakes compared to how much it would take via a regular bridge.
The water taxi would also be fostering a more rapid transition towards greener transportation, since the system is self-driving, fully electric, and powered by solar energy and batteries, making it carbon neutral and canceling out the CO2 emissions that trucks, trains, cars, and boats would otherwise create.
The CrossWater system also seeks to improve the quality of life in whichever place it’s established. From reducing commute times and allowing for more comfortable travel to cutting pollution and creating job opportunities, the system intends to provide a positive impact on communities in a variety of ways.
