Whoosh Hold LP
Sugar Land is exploring the possibility of bringing a cable and rail system to the city.
The new system would function similarly to the gondolas used in mountain towns but would provide on-demand, nonstop trips.
The city is partnering with transportation company Swyft Cities to study the feasibility of building its Whoosh transportation system to connect areas like the Sugar Land Town Square, Smart Financial Centre and the Lake Pointe area that’s being redeveloped.
Conventional gondolas rely on moving cables that rotate the vehicles throughout the stops.
The Whoosh system uses a different type of technology. Its cables do not move. Instead, it uses electric vehicles that move along the lines independently of one another.
“You get to a station, you have an app, you tell it ‘I want to go to Crown Festival Boulevard from city hall.’ And you board, you pay your fare and it takes you directly there so you don’t have to stop at each station,” said Melanie Beaman, Sugar Land’s transportation and mobility manager.
Natalie Weber / Houston Public Media
Beaman said the city began looking into the project as a way to get pedestrians across the intersection of Highway 69 and Highway 6. She said a pedestrian bridge would cost roughly the same amount, but would take up a significant amount of space.
“A pedestrian bridge would get people from point A to point B – what if we could go more places?” Beaman said.
The city estimates that the project’s engineering and design phase would cost roughly $12 million. Beaman said the city is exploring federal funding and will look into the possibility of public-private partnerships if the project moves forward.
“We want to bring people to Sugar Land,” Beaman said. “We want people to come and spend time and work, shop and play. So it does have that benefit as well.”
The city is wrapping up a feasibility study for the project.
