Trains Without Drivers
In Vancouver, Canada, a shiny train called the SkyTrain has carried passengers through the city since 1985 — and if you peek into the very front car, you won't find a driver's seat at all! No person steers this train. A computer does. Trains like this are called autonomous trains, and they are already zooming through cities all over the world, carrying millions of people to school, work, and home every single day.
What You'll Learn
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to: - Explain what makes a train "driverless" - Describe how sensors and computers help a train know where to go - Name two real cities where driverless trains carry passengers today - Compare a driverless train to a train with a human driver
What Makes a Train "Driverless"?
A driverless train has a computer "brain" instead of a person in the driver's seat. That computer gets information from cameras and sensors placed along the tracks and on the train itself. The computer uses that information to decide three big things: when to speed up, when to slow down, and when to stop completely — usually within a fraction of a second, faster than a person could react.
How Does the Train Know Where to Go?
Driverless trains follow metal rails that are built into one exact path, so the train cannot turn the wrong way like a car might. Along the route, radio signals and track sensors constantly tell the train's computer exactly where it is. Special sensors near the doors check that no bag, hand, or shoe is stuck before the doors are allowed to close. Other sensors watch the track ahead so the train can stop itself if something unexpected is in the way.
The Vancouver SkyTrain has safely carried riders without a human driver since 1985 — that's over 40 years of driverless trips!
Where Can You Ride One?
Driverless trains are not science fiction — you can ride one today. In Vancouver, Canada, the SkyTrain has run without drivers since 1985. In London, England, the Docklands Light Railway has carried passengers without a driver since 1987. In New York City, the AirTrain at JFK Airport zips travelers between terminals with no one at the controls. All three trains do the same important job: get people where they need to go, safely and on time, using computers instead of a human driver.
Match each part of a driverless train to the job it does.
Terms
Definitions
Drag terms onto their definitions, or click a term then click a definition to match.
Who or what steers a driverless train like the Vancouver SkyTrain?
Why do driverless trains have sensors near the doors?
Design Your Own Driverless Train
Draw a picture of a driverless train car. Label at least three parts it needs: one sensor, the computer brain, and the rails. Underneath your drawing, write one sentence explaining what your train does if it sees something blocking the track.
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