Aircraft
manufacturer Airbus is working with
French transport operator RATP Group to explore the feasibility of
"vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) vehicles" to operate in the French
capital, hoping to bring the air taxis to Paris in time for the 2024 Olympic
Games.
The
feasibility study, launched in partnership with airport operator Groupe ADP,
the Paris Ile-de-France region and the French civil aviation authority (DGAC),
will look into traffic management, urban integration, maintenance, and design
and production.
To
get to the city center, visitors arriving at Charles de Gaulle International
Airport currently have to take a taxi, a 35-minute train, or a bus that could
take between 45 and 90 minutes.
$11.4 million project
Efforts
will be made to ensure that "the flying autonomous vehicle is accessible
to the greatest number of people," the RATP group said.
Airport
manager ADP has until the end of the year to pick a site to develop for a
"vertiport" -- a facility capable of hosting air taxis in the region
around Paris, news agency AFP reported. Plans are afoot to have the venue ready
within 18 months, but would require €10 million ($11.4 million) in
infrastructure investment, ADP executive director general Edward Arkwright
estimated.
Uber has said Melbourne would be
the first city outside of the US to get its flying taxis, after Dallas and Los
Angeles. Rolls-Royce and Boeing have also announced plans for aerial vehicles.
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