Jetrail was invented and designed by George Adams, president of Mobility Systems Control, Inc. of Los Angeles. Braniff International wanted an inexpensive automated system to carry people from a remote parking lot to Braniff's new "Terminal of the Future." The $2 million system consisted of ten fully air conditioned and heated suspended Jetrail Passenger Coaches, each with a capacity of 10 passengers plus hand baggage. Each Coach was painted in vibrant colors that matched those painted on Braniff's jet aircraft. The colors were designed by architect and designer Alexander Girard and the New York Citydesign firm of Harper and George, but the general design of Jetrail's Air Coach and stanchion color schemes and interior areas were designed by the Airline's interior designer Chuck Ax. Two separate all-baggage cars were also used, allowing passengers to check luggage before boarding the vehicle.
Jetrail Stations
The system consisted of a single closed loop in length and elevated above ground with six switches. Bypass tracks were located at each end of the loop for vehicle storage and maintenance. Stations were located at the end of each loop: one in the parking lot and the other near the concourse gates. A third station was located on the line to the parking lot beside the baggage claim area. The total travel time averaged 3.5 minutes—much faster than buses and cars it replaced.
Passenger Usage
Forty-seven percent of Braniff's passengers used the system, with ridership of 4 million passengers in the first full year of operation and 2.5 million passengers in the last year of service. Over the life of the system, Jetrail moved over 10,000,000 passengers. The system logged an impressive 500,000 vehicle-miles per year and operated with a 99.9% reliability.
Passenger Selected Automatic Control
Jetrail was automatically controlled with elevator type buttons and demonstrated that a very lightweight guideway could be built and would adequately support the vehicles. Originally powered by rotary induction motors, the system was later adapted to linear induction motor propulsion. Replacing the two rotary induction motors and the associated mechanical drive system with a single linear induction motor producing four hundred pounds thrust reduced the shuttle car weight by one ton and the single LIM increased the car speed from seventeen to thirty six miles per hour.
Proposed Uses of Jetrail After Closure
Braniff International moved the majority of its operations to the new Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in January, 1974, which prompted the closure of Jetrail services after only four years of highly successful operation. Soon after closure, the Jetrail Fastpark Satellite Terminal was turned into a multilevel discothèque in 1975. The city of Waco, Texas, considered using the system for an urban project but the idea was later abandoned. A hotel in Memphis, Tennessee, also considered buying the system, but the system was not long enough. Additional plans to sell the system to the City of Dallas and Holiday Inn, also failed to materialize. Without a buyer, the Jetrail System was dismantled during 1978.
