Rubber Tired Metro

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A Rubber-tyred metro is a form of rapid transit system that uses a mix of road and rail technology. In this the vehicles have wheels with rubber tyres like a bus, but using a set of two parallel concrete or corrugated steel rollways, each with the width of a tyre. The vehicles have wheels with rubber tyres which run inside a guide way for traction, as well as traditional railway steel wheels with flanges on steel tracks for guidance.

Fig: Bogie from an MP 89 Paris Metro rolling stock

History of Rubber Tired Metro

• Rubber-tyred Metros were first invented by the Regie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP)
• Rubber-tyred metro technology was first applied to the Paris Metro, developed by Michelin
• The first completely rubber-tyred metro system was built in Montréal, Canada

Fig: The first ever rubber-tyred Parisian Metro at the Porte-des-Lilas station.

Track and Wheels Schematics of Rubber Tired Metro

Fig: Rubber tyres and guide way of a Montreal Metro train

Fig: NM-73 in Mexico City metro

Advantages of Rubber Tired Metro

1. Smooth ride (with little "jostling" around)?
2. Faster acceleration
3. Shorter braking distances, allowing trains to be signalled closer together
4. The ability to climb or descend steeper slopes (~gradient 13%) than would be feasible with conventional rail tracks.
5. Quiet ride in open air (for residents and those outside the train)

Disadvantages

1. Higher energy consumption than steel-on-steel
2. A larger quantity of excess heat is generated
3. Expensive to build, install and maintain.