The city of Sugar Land announced earlier this month that it had entered into an agreement with Swyft Cities to study the possibility of "bringing an autonomous elevated cable and rail mobility system" to its skies.
"We couldn't be more excited to partner on a project that's unlike anything else in the nation," said Sugar Land City Manager Michael W. Goodrum in the announcement. "Our residents have told us that mobility is among their top priorities, and we are committed to being responsive to their needs by providing opportunities for projects they tell us are important. We will be relentless in looking for opportunities like this one to partner with state and federal funding sources to reduce the financial impact to our residents while also delivering mobility projects that support quality of life, economic development and tourism."
A post from Sugar Land's official account on X noted that the aerial vehicles could stop at locations such as Sugar Land Town Square and Smart Financial Centre.
Swyft Cities was formed by former Google employees who sought to commercialize a technology developed by Holmes Solutions called Whoosh. The Whoosh system, according to Swyft Cities, "creates personalized, point-to-point transportation for passengers or goods traveling in smart electric vehicles on a light and flexible elevated cable and rail network." The vehicles, which would be on demand and nonstop, can change elevation or even turn to change their route by navigating an elevated guideway.
This isn't the first time that Swift Cities has shown interest in Texas. In March 2023, Swyft Cities began to engage the Regional Transportation Council for North Texas, seeking to identify locations that may be a good fit for the Whoosh system. In June, Arlington, Dallas, DeSoto, Frisco and Plano were named as potential partners. A Whoosh pilot project is now underway in Queenstown, New Zealand.
In Sugar Land, the city and Swyft Cities will conduct a study to determine the potential for introducing Whoosh. According to the city, the study will investigate potential routes and station locations, and it will hope to identify "public-private partnerships to minimize financial burdens and risk for the city."
"We're excited to partner with the city of Sugar Land to bring a new level of fast, convenient mobility to help support the fast-growing region," said Swyft Cities CEO Jeral Poskey in the announcement. "The city of Sugar Land is emerging as a global leader in implementing advanced transportation infrastructures introducing exciting new ways to meet their growing mobility needs not only for today, but for the future as well."
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