Optical guidance , an optically guided
TEOR bus in
Rouen Optical guidance relies on the principles of
image processing. A camera in the front of the vehicle scans the bands of paint on the ground representing the reference path. The signals obtained by the camera are sent to an onboard computer, which combines them with dynamic parameters of the vehicle (speed, yaw rate, wheel angle). The calculator transmits commands to the guidance motor located on the
steering column of the vehicle to control its path in line with that of the reference. Optical guidance is a means of approaching
light rail performance with a fast and economical set-up. It enables buses to have precision-docking capabilities as efficient as those of light rail and reduces dwell times, making it possible to drive the vehicle to a precise point on a platform according to an accurate and reliable trajectory. The distance between the door steps and the platform is optimized not to exceed . Level boarding is then possible, and there is no need to use a mobile ramp for people with mobility impairments.
Guided trolleybus , Spain The Optiguide system, an optical guidance device developed by
Siemens Transportation Systems, has been in revenue service since 2001 in
Rouen and
Nîmes (only at stations), France, and has been fitted to
trolleybuses in
Castellon (Spain) since June 2008 and will be in service on buses in the cities of
Bologna (Italy).
Magnetic guidance Other experimental systems have non-mechanical guidance, such as sensors or magnets buried in the roadway. In 2004,
Stagecoach Group signed a deal with
Siemens to develop an optical guidance system for use in the United Kingdom. Two bus lines in
Eindhoven, Netherlands, had used
Phileas vehicles. Line 401 from Eindhoven station to Eindhoven Airport is long, consists largely of concrete bus lanes and has about 30 raised stop platforms. Line 402 from Eindhoven station to Veldhoven branches off from line 401 and adds another of bus lanes and about 13 stops. Years before the last trip of a Phileas bus in 2016, the regional authority for urban transport in the Eindhoven region (SRE) decided to discontinue the use of magnetic guidance system. In 2014 the manufacturer, APTS, was declared bankrupt. The
Douai region in France is developing a public transport network using
APTS Phileas technology and dedicated infrastructure. The length of the lines will be . The first stage is a line of from Douai via Guesnain to Lewarde, passing close to Waziers, Sin-le-Noble, Dechy and Lambres-lez-Douai. 39 stop platforms will be provided with an average distance between the stops of . A number of stops will be placed on the right-hand side of each lane. Central stops between both lanes will be placed at locations with limited space at the right side. This requires vehicle to have doors on both sides. The buses using Phileas technology were in use from 2008 to 2014. , South Korea On 3 November 2005, a licence and technology transfer agreement was signed between Advanced Public Transport Systems (APTS) and the
Korea Railroad Research Institute (KRRI). KRRI was to develop the Korean version of Phileas vehicle by May 2011. Since June 2013, 3 miles (1.5 miles each way) of the
Emerald Express (EmX) BRT in Eugene, Oregon, has used magnetic guidance in revenue service on an especially curvy section of the route that also entails small radius S-curves required for docking. The driver controls braking and acceleration.
Kerb guidance , Germany On kerb-guided buses (KGB) small guide wheels attached to the bus engage vertical kerbs on either side of the guideway. These guide wheels push the steering mechanism of the bus, keeping it centralised on the track. Away from the guideway, the bus is steered in the normal way. The start of the guideway is funnelled from a wide track to guideway width. This system permits high-speed operation on a narrow guideway and precise positioning at boarding platforms, facilitating access for the elderly and disabled. As guide wheels can be inexpensively attached to, and removed from, almost any standard model of bus, kerb guided busway systems are not tied to particular specialised vehicles or equipment suppliers. Characteristically, operators contracted to run services on kerb-guided busways will purchase or lease the vehicles, as second-hand vehicles (with guide wheels removed) have a ready resale market. , Germany The kerb-guided system maintains a narrow track while still enabling buses to pass one another at speed. Consequently, kerb-guided track can be fitted into former double-track rail alignments without the requirement for additional land-take that might have been necessary were a disused railway to be converted into a public highway. Examples include the
Cambridgeshire Guided Busway and
Leigh-Salford-Manchester Bus Rapid Transit; in both schemes, it has proved possible to provide space for a wide multi-user path for leisure use alongside the kerb-guided double track, all within the boundaries of the disused railway route. Both the Cambridgeshire and Leigh-Salford-Manchester schemes have reported greatly increased levels of patronage (both on the buses themselves and the adjacent paths), high levels of modal transfer of travellers from private car use, and high levels of passenger satisfaction. ==List of guided busways systems==