Just as the first automobiles looked like horseless wagons, the design of many electric vehicles tends to follow the brief of conventional cars. In fact the electrical car tries to imitate the conventional car without questioning their appropriateness. This article proposes a new approach, based firstly on the factual use pattern of the motor car and secondly on the realities of the urban fabric as developed in the era of the motor car. In fact the new brief proposes a conceptual split between individual (I) and collective (C) subsystems of transportation, which however should complement each other. Working out the I-subsystem results in a brief for a light, two person, emission free vehicle, with limited maximum speed (50 km/h) and travel range (100 km). This I-vehicle meets most individual needs and environmental requirements much better than either the conventional motor car or public transport systems in low density areas. The limited capacities of the I-vehicles are complemented by the C-subsystem. This consists of stations along the motorway network. These stations offer 'roll-on roll-off' facilities for I-vehicles on special carriers, riding on dedicated lanes of the motorways. But they also provide 'park-and-ride' facilities for I-vehicles, conventional cars, and bikes, providing transfer to buses which also use the motorway system. A first pilot of the applicability of the IC-system and its complementarity to other transport modes is made. Finally, a scenario is sketched describing the phases by which an IC-system could be introduced technically and politically.
Samenvatting