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We have been featured in an article discussing the conference highlights. Take a look at:\u0026nbsp;https://smartcitiesconnect.org/innovation-at-smart-cities-connect-conference-expo-fall-2023/ :Innovation at Smart Cities Connect Conference \u0026 Expo Fall 2023At Smart Cities Connect, there is never a shortage of innovative, impactful ideas and the Fall Conference and Expo was no exception. 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Since in person marketing and networking have been tough to do, we largely turned our focus inward during 2021 to successfully focus on further developing our technology.\u0026nbsp; And despite the challenges, we achieved significant traction on ...","published_at":"2022-03-24T19:22:12Z","author_name":"Daryl Anderson","url":"/feed/153917","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/153917"},{"id":152938,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:152938","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"Swift Rails CEO, Kevin Neumaier, to be a Keynote Speaker at the Smart Cities Connect Conference in April","preview":"Kevin will be on a four person panel in the Smart Mobility track called \"Mobility in the Infrastructure Bill Era\".\u0026nbsp;Swift Rails will also be exhibiting and bringing a vehicle for conference attendees to sit in and see in person.Smart Cities Connect provides meaningful content and connects a thoughtful community of decision-makers to empower smart cities at all stages of growth. They accelerate the adoption of smart technology solutions, aid in problem solving, and amplify city resources f...","published_at":"2022-02-22T15:27:47Z","author_name":"Daryl Anderson","url":"/feed/152938","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/152938"},{"id":150510,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:150510","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"Progress Update: Exciting Developments","preview":"To our Investors and Supporters,Although it feels much longer, it has only been about 9 months since we paused our Wefunder campaign.\u0026nbsp;I am happy to report that things are going very well!During that time, we have completed our outdoor test track, enabling us to advance our technology substantially. 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Their eyes light up when they imagine the possibilities. They love it!Over 1,000 people have had a chance to get a first hand look at our products, here are some of the things they've said:• Wow, this is fantastic, I can’t believe this form of transport doesn’t already exist yet!• When will I be able to ride Swift Rails to work in my neighborhood?• This would make my life so much better ...","published_at":"2021-01-22T03:04:44Z","author_name":"Tony Gale","url":"/feed/141312","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/141312"},{"id":141189,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:141189","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","preview":"WHAT OUR INVESTORS ARE SAYINGWe’re really excited to share this great video our team put together of what our investors are saying about this investment opportunity!/a285b4e561If you want to be in our next video please post your thoughts about Swift Rails in the “Why did you invest?” section of your account.Thanks for your support!","published_at":"2021-01-19T00:47:48Z","author_name":"Tony Gale","url":"/feed/141189","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/141189"},{"id":141117,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:141117","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"30 DAYS REMAIN TO INVEST!","preview":"Hi Everyone,There are just 30 days remaining to invest in Swift Rails before our fundraising campaign closes so if you are thinking about investing or increasing your stake, now is the time! In the meantime if you have any questions please just let us know.Thank you very much!The Swift Rails Team","published_at":"2021-01-16T14:02:19Z","author_name":"Tony Gale","url":"/feed/141117","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/141117"},{"id":140998,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:140998","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"Invest with your IRA Account","preview":"It recently came to my attention that WeFunder now allows its users to invest using their IRA account. While investors have long been able to make private investments through a self-directed IRA, the experience has been cumbersome on Crowdfunding Platforms. Alto helps anyone use their retirement savings to invest in alternative assets, including private equity, real estate, early-stage companies, and cryptocurrency. And the best part is, Alto has transformed the experience by making the proce...","published_at":"2021-01-13T21:13:35Z","author_name":"Daryl Anderson","url":"/feed/140998","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/140998"},{"id":140914,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:140914","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"Substantial Spending on \"Green\" Infrastructure Should Benefit Swift Rails","preview":"The recent transition to Democratic control has generated significant investment demand for companies in infrastructure, cleantech, electric vehicles, etc.\u0026nbsp; At Swift Rails we believe the substantial new focus on climate friendly infrastructure spending should provide a strong and exciting tailwind for our business. The Biden plan talks about “Revolutionizing municipal transit networks”, “Sparking the second great railroad revolution”, and empowering “state leaders to explore new, smarter...","published_at":"2021-01-12T00:35:20Z","author_name":"Daryl Anderson","url":"/feed/140914","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/140914"},{"id":140793,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:140793","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"GREAT NEWS!","preview":"We’re excited to announce we have just hired two interns!Both interns are from Clarkson University, a Top 10 Engineering School of the U.S.One intern is an honors student in Mechanical Engineering and the other is graduating in Electrical and Computer Engineering.The interns will be working on Swift Rails’ vehicle hardware, software and track.We will\u0026nbsp;also be hiring more high caliber interns to fast track our work.We are using a Clean Energy Internship Program award we secured from the Ne...","published_at":"2021-01-08T20:16:56Z","author_name":"Tony Gale","url":"/feed/140793","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/140793"},{"id":137215,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:137215","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"A Quick Progress Update Coming into the New Year","preview":"A Quick Progress Update Coming into the New Year","published_at":"2021-01-07T15:23:12Z","author_name":"Tony Gale","url":"/feed/137215","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/137215"},{"id":140089,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:140089","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"Swift Rails Press Release on Surpassing $330k","preview":"We're happy to report that since last week's press release we have now raised over $340k from 243 investors - finishing the year strong! Thank you for all the support!! Read more about it here .","published_at":"2020-12-28T22:26:49Z","author_name":"Daryl Anderson","url":"/feed/140089","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/140089"},{"id":139842,"entity_id":"wefunder:feed_item:139842","type":"FeedItem::Update","visibility":"public","title":"Why We Chose Swift Rails","preview":"Why We Chose Swift Rails","published_at":"2020-12-16T14:13:07Z","author_name":"Daryl Anderson","url":"/feed/139842","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/feed/139842"}],"q_and_a":[{"id":204199,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:204199","question":"Have you received interest / orders from any cities / countries?","author_name":"Vikram L","votes":7,"created_at":"2022-05-05T12:09:28Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-204199","answers":[{"id":204963,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:204963","answer":"Hi Vikram, Yes we are receiving interest from a number of cities and countries. Part of this raise is to handle the new interest we are getting in our systems - which has been outstanding. We have progressed with several entities where we have defined the routes and have identified the funding. Being a disruptive technology there are some self interests that do not prefer our new cheaper and faster technology. We will announce contracts as we sign them but talking too much about where we stand with any particular client on the internet gives away some of our competitive advantage. We were recently at the Smart Cities Conference in Columbus where we gave a keynote, a session, an investor pitch and exhibited a vehicle. This was the first time that one of our team was at conference with us. He said \"customer response is amazing! Is it always like this?\" - it has been and as we get out more it continues to get better.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":6,"created_at":"2022-05-12T14:28:37Z"}]},{"id":202847,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:202847","question":"How did the pandemic impact the company?","author_name":"Daniel Golding","votes":6,"created_at":"2022-04-26T15:34:38Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-202847","answers":[{"id":202955,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:202955","answer":"Thanks for the question Daniel. Surprisingly we have come out of the pandemic in very good shape! The pandemic was terrible on so many levels to so many people. We got lucky in a number of ways. Although we had a project pause and the world sort of stopped for what seemed like a very long time - we made great use of the time to improve our technology and the demand for our systems is now much greater that it was. We were able to rapidly advance our technology and innovation in part because there were no outside distractions. We refined our product and production processes. The pace of innovation was fast. We built an indoor and outside test track where we were able to rapidly test out ideas. We communicated a lot to one another. We came up with some outstanding ideas, some of which are likely to add to our patent portfolio. At the same time as we were refining our product, we had a focus on how we would scale operations. This led us to find various improvements that became a monthly or even weekly event. Collectively these improvements make us better in terms of quality, reliability, and efficiency. Just a huge step forward technologically! Surprisingly, we did it during a pandemic. The customer side was what we thought we might be missing out on. We did have discussions - mostly virtually, but that is somewhat lacking when demonstrating a new product. We did pretty well moving some initiatives forward virtually. We are now finally out talking with people in person and the response is so great! A couple weeks ago, we were at the Smart Cities conference in Columbus where we had great interest. Discussions were way beyond how does it work? and on to where to put the first route for a city and how to fund it. Many city officials had said that this was the first in-person conference that they have attended since the pandemic started. They are excited to get things done, so the pace of discussions is faster. The historically large and green infrastructure act in the US is another huge driver. The resilience of our systems is greater appreciated now. While the pandemic has waned (at least in the US) no one is really sure if is truly over. Our individual and small group vehicles are much safer in any type of respiratory contagion event than big subways, light rail vehicles or buses. We are socially distanced. In terms of resilience, our elevated tracks are also much better in other big emergencies such as flooding, large snowfall, or hurricanes (we don't run during them but can be up quickly afterward). Now that the pandemic is mostly over, I am so glad that we made so much progress and that we are in a very good position.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":5,"created_at":"2022-04-26T21:49:53Z"}]},{"id":202325,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:202325","question":"Do you have plans to expand in the Middle East, especially the city of NEOM in Saudi Arabia","author_name":"Omar ALSHARIF","votes":6,"created_at":"2022-04-23T02:22:35Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-202325","answers":[{"id":202470,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:202470","answer":"Hi Omar - we are looking at most countries in the world as our ultimate market. A number of countries in the Middle East like and appreciate the best new technologies. They are early adopters and a great fit for what we offer. We have had some initial discussions with a few different people working on the NEOM project and it looks like Swift Rails could be a very good match. Conceptually, pairing new technologies such as Swift Rails with the construction of new cities makes a lot of sense. For these ambitious projects, matching up transformative technology with a grand future plan can achieve some awesome results. In addition to NEOM we are talking with several other locations that are looking to construct some of the new cities of the future. We are very excited about these and look forward to being a part of them.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":6,"created_at":"2022-04-24T17:09:24Z"}]},{"id":105149,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105149","question":"I've read about Personal Rapid Transit systems for about 25 years now. Again and again companies build little demo systems, but they never go anywhere. Why is your demo going to be different than Morgantown, Heathrow, Suncheon, Masdar, ...?","author_name":"Eric Uhrhane","votes":6,"created_at":"2020-09-04T01:52:33Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-105149","answers":[{"id":105248,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105248","answer":"Thanks for the question Eric. The short answer is price, convenience and comfort are the primary differentiators. The somewhat longer answer - Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) has been a concept that has been around for a number of decades as you note. In many ways, it is a near perfect way for people to move around, so why haven't some earlier attempts worked out to be big commercial successes? As you say a few PRT systems have been built. Morgantown is still working and has an very good safety record but was expensive to build. The vehicles they use are really more like bus size with 20 passenger capacity. Suncheon is a 10 person capacity system. Heathrow is a little smaller but their pods are still like a mini-bus. We went about it a different way. The car is the most dominant form of transportation in the world. Most trips - 85% in the US are single occupancy. Why have a 6 or more seat vehicle weighing 4000 plus pounds to move a 200 pound person? This can never be efficient or sustainable. We set about to design a light weight, efficient vehicle, that was comfortable, fast, and looked good. These were the things that people want in a car and are some of the reasons we seem to have wide appeal. Our lighter weight vehicles also reduce the system costs of the track. This may not be an exact analogy, but consider the car was around for about two decades before it became really popular when Henry Ford came up with a way to make it affordable to the masses. Much of what we are doing at Swift Rails is to get this out to the world at scale. This should be great for our environment, individual safety, and our economy. We also thinks it makes for a great business.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":3,"created_at":"2020-09-04T18:06:01Z"}]},{"id":205743,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:205743","question":"Hello Kevin, my wife and I are interested in investing in this company. We would like to know when will it close. Thank you in advance for this information.","author_name":"Broderick Bellow","votes":5,"created_at":"2022-05-20T02:44:04Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-205743","answers":[{"id":205805,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:205805","answer":"Great! - we look forward to having you as shareholders for what we think will be a great ride (some pun intended). The closing date is scheduled to be July 30, 2022. It can end earlier however if we hit the maximum amount which oddly is $534,996. We are about halfway there now. At this current rate of investments we would close ahead of time so I would suggest investing as soon as you are able so that get in ahead of the close. Many thanks, Kevin","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":4,"created_at":"2022-05-20T17:01:14Z"}]},{"id":105127,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105127","question":"Thanks for your reply. A few more questions: 1) Will fares be a flat fee or based on distance? How much will the basic fare be? 2) Do riders need to book their rides or is it 1st come 1st serve? What if someone needs a luggage vehicle? Is it extra?","author_name":"Leonardo Lee","votes":4,"created_at":"2020-09-03T22:50:44Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-105127","answers":[{"id":105232,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105232","answer":"Thanks Leonardo. Pricing is difficult to answer without the specific route and user in mind - but here is an attempt. In general, we anticipate being profitable at fares similar to what is charged now by conventional transit (currently these fares represent only 30% of the average cost of the existing transit service - this means that these systems require large subsidies to operate. We operate profitably at these same prices where it is already established that there is ridership willing to pay. This is a big deal for our economics, building and extending lines, and return for shareholders). For a commuter or college student, a monthly pass might work best. For a tourist destination, daily passes, one time tickets, or bundled packages that include Swift Rails may work best. Luggage vehicles can bundled into the pricing as well. Riders need to book their rides ahead of time. They can either do that from their phone, computer, etc. or do it right at the station. We will use predictive analytics to determine where to place vehicles at certain times and days of the week and known events, so even if you haven't booked before you get to the station, the wait shouldn't be too long.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":1,"created_at":"2020-09-04T14:21:18Z"}]},{"id":206933,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:206933","question":"Hi, I'm really interested at green technology, however, I do wonder few questions hope you can provide some information. 1. what's your advantage (technology, etc) compare to peers at transpotation innovation, also, is the technology fully developed and ready to deploy immidiatly? 2. what's your expansion plan, for example, which city and when we are expecting to see it's running; 3. after viewing your model, I wonder if your technology is more suitable for a industrial park rather than city environment, given the capacity (1 person) of each vehicle. At last, although we are love green technology, really curious if is it the energy system make it more efficient and cheaper than tranditional transpotation instrument.","author_name":"Chen Wang","votes":3,"created_at":"2022-05-31T19:08:12Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-206933","answers":[{"id":207175,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:207175","answer":"Thanks for the questions Chen. 1 - we have several advantages - lower cost, higher energy efficiency, greater comfort, and fastest point to point service. This compares to everything that we know to be out there and in development and we are ready to deploy. 2 - we are in discussion with over a half dozen locations where we believe that we are the frontrunner. Which city is first is not entirely in our control so I'm not going to speculate. The projects being discussed typically start with a first demonstration and can have values in the many hundreds of millions of dollars. Starting times could be within months on some projects. Our expansion plan is to be able to mass produce track and vehicles to meet demand which could reach over a billion dollars pretty quickly. 3 - Currently 85% of trips made in the US are in single occupant car/truck. We showcase the single person vehicle but also make a 2 and 4 person vehicle and can make some specialty vehicles for things like a ski resort. Green efficiency - we started out to make the most efficient way to get people to their destination in as quick and comfortable manner as possible. On this, I think we have done a great job... beyond my expectations. But even more than that, I am surprised at how much more efficient translates to lower costs. Theoretically it should but it doesn't always do so. Since we were starting from the ground up we were able to weigh many of those cost/benefit pieces and come up with a great system that doesn't cost that much. I think we made good use of the time during the pandemic to really refine the manufacturability of our systems.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":2,"created_at":"2022-06-02T16:26:47Z"}]},{"id":104949,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:104949","question":"This could be an investment opportunity that one may not want to pass up; however, I have a couple of questions. 1) Is there any place in the USA or anywhere in the world that this tiny railways concept ever tested to work? 2) Building some new railways in most cities can be tough undertaken due to a lack of commercial space obviously. How do you intend to convince city leaders to go along with you?","author_name":"Richard Antwi","votes":3,"created_at":"2020-09-02T22:05:27Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-104949","answers":[{"id":105029,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105029","answer":"Good questions Richard. A working passenger carrying system of this type does not currently exist anywhere. We have been told that value of the company will increase substantially once this happens. We have built a full scale prototype and tested many component pieces of the system. These match up pretty well with our calculations and are sometimes exceeding our expectations. While it is likely that we make some modifications as we go to full scale, we expect that we will be successful. Our conversations to date with city leaders have been very positive. Mayors, city planners, transportation analysts, and others have liked the concept and been surprisingly helpful. We use several hundred times less ground space than a typical railroad or road, so we can fit in many spaces that other technology can not. As we look at potential routes we are looking to those locations where we are compatible with the land use and will improve the city. While there are some routes we are not a good fit such as those with extensive overhead wiring, there are other routes such as following bike paths where we are the only type of transportation that is compatible.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":1,"created_at":"2020-09-03T03:42:58Z"}]},{"id":319957,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:319957","question":"Last update was almost 2 years ago, is there any progress?","author_name":"Karthik Kailash","votes":2,"created_at":"2025-11-19T19:59:25Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-319957","answers":[]},{"id":220046,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:220046","question":"Has there been any dates set for when the first of these will be built? If so, where? Thanks!","author_name":"Kyle Seidel","votes":2,"created_at":"2022-09-26T16:05:24Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-220046","answers":[{"id":220201,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:220201","answer":"Hi Kyle, We will announce them as soon as our clients give us the go ahead to do so. We are looking forward to doing so. Thanks, Kevin","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-09-27T22:31:37Z"}]},{"id":213732,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:213732","question":"I have seen various closing dates, but none seem conclusive. Is there a current closing date in effect?","author_name":"Brian Smolens","votes":2,"created_at":"2022-08-03T04:04:05Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-213732","answers":[{"id":215376,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:215376","answer":"Hi Brian - sorry for the confusion. The closing date is in November unless we sell to the maximum raise amount of about $550,000 before that. We had some people ask for us to extend the closing date and we might have some news to announce before then.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-08-15T14:15:11Z"}]},{"id":213249,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:213249","question":"I love this concept! I'm interested investing, but the share price is extremely high for the stage and valuation. Can you explain why? Also, what round of funding is this?","author_name":"Marisa Adam","votes":2,"created_at":"2022-07-29T15:54:59Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-213249","answers":[{"id":215389,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:215389","answer":"Thanks Marisa. Quickest answer is scale. Swift Rails is not the simplest thing to conceive, build and implement. When comparing valuations to consumer products our business is very different. Let's compare Swift Rails to a consumer product company that has a selling price of $100/unit. Investing is typically a simple set of questions - is the product good? how are sales? is there traction? is the market big enough? how well do they compete? can they expand? The analyses can be complicated but it is a look at how revenue is growing that largely determines valuation. Compared to that $100/unit item the big difference is that a Swift Rails system price is likely to be 1 million to 10 million times larger ($100 million - $1 billion are likely fully built out systems). Success as an investor is likely to be very large when we achieve a very small number of sales. Thanks, Kevin","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-08-15T15:17:43Z"}]},{"id":212110,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:212110","question":"Will this rail be exclusively all electric system. I am intrigued by the green energy move. Thank you.","author_name":"Herman Lee Spencer","votes":2,"created_at":"2022-07-20T05:26:00Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-212110","answers":[{"id":212604,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:212604","answer":"Hi Herman! Yes, the system is all electric. The origin of Swift Rails goes to answering the question of how do we get to entirely sustainable transportation? Lightweight, low rolling resistance and excellent aerodynamics powered by renewable energy was the answer. Surprising how many other things it improves - faster, safer, more resilient, greater convenience, etc.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":2,"created_at":"2022-07-25T14:45:31Z"}]},{"id":107613,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:107613","question":"Is this only going to be short hauls within a large metro area? Will long haul to LA to Vegas also be done? Or cross country?","author_name":"Carol Shrum","votes":2,"created_at":"2020-09-24T00:06:49Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-107613","answers":[{"id":107629,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:107629","answer":"Good questions Carol. Our near term focus is on the shorter distances of a large metro area. We can be a good fit on some longer haul routes like LA to Vegas. And we don't think we are the best transportation for going cross country. 95% of all trips are under 50 miles, so there is a great need and a big market for this local travel. Swift Rails is a faster way to get around for local travel as we are not slowed by surface traffic and congestion. We are also more convenient as the vehicles are autonomous and private so you can spend your time doing something useful or enjoyable on the trip. For a trip like LA to Vegas, the total distance is less than 300 miles, so we likely would take around 2.5 hours which would be comfortable and relatively fast. Now if we had fully built out systems in both LA and Las Vegas, the value proposition might be better - anywhere in LA to anywhere in Vegas in less than 3 hours. So our near term focus is on local travel but we will look at these longer connecting opportunities of 100-300 miles when they make sense. As for going coast to coast with Swift Rails, it will not be the fastest but it could be a lot of fun if you have time to stop and visit friends/family and see some sites along the way. If you got tired looking out the windshield at the scenery you could catch a nice long nap safely between stops.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2020-09-24T02:29:57Z"}]},{"id":105062,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105062","question":"Hello Mr. Neumaier, Going off questions asked by Mr. Lee on luggage and attendants at \"stations\" to help the customers get in and out of the \"carriage\": - Although the \"carriage\" design is slick it doesn't seem to be thought for people that have mobility issues and people that might be too small or too large... Is there a more spacious \"carriage\" for those people? On my own questions: - When it comes to functionality of the rails, are the rails going to have closed or open tracks? For example, Lower Manhattan would have a separate \"circular track\" from Middle and North Manhattan? - What is the maximum amount of carriages -plus people- that a track can have at any given moment? I am asking this because the poles for the rail-track in the presentation seem rather thin... And what is the weight limit of \"carriages\" -plus people- per section of rail-track? The intention behind my questions is to know how many people can your rails transport at any given moment. Best regards, Miguel Costa","author_name":"Miguel Costa","votes":2,"created_at":"2020-09-03T11:39:32Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-105062","answers":[{"id":105068,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105068","answer":"Thanks Miguel. Our \"standard\" vehicle is comfortable for most body types. A gentleman at 6'7\" described our vehicle as exceptionally comfortable. We tried to make sure that sight lines work for shorter people and kids and the response has been very positive. The vehicles are pretty spacious inside and they match up to the platform well. If a person can sit in a chair they can get into our vehicle. Unlike traditional transit, we wait until the person is in the vehicle before leaving the station. For students this is about 10 seconds. For others that need more time, this may be a minute. That said, we will also have special vehicles that can be ordered up that can have special uses. A track has the capacity for a vehicle every 2 seconds, which is the same capacity as a road if everyone drove perfectly. We get considerably faster throughput because we don't have stop signs, left hand turns, etc. Weight for a single person vehicle with rider and luggage is going to be in the 600-800 pound range. As far as a maximum weight, a 4 person vehicle (with longer wheelbase) could hold 4 - 400 pound people with a little luggage. All the tracks are for one way traffic (improves safety and speed). Most lines are tracks both ways. For high volume traffic areas, we can attach multiple tracks to a slightly thicker pole coupled with a stronger foundation.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":2,"created_at":"2020-09-03T13:20:08Z"}]},{"id":105041,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105041","question":"Hi. When do you expect to start generating revenue? Once you do, what are your goals for the first 5 years? And when would you like to hit the 1B mark in revenue? I understand that nothing is guaranteed, I just want to have an idea of the growth you are envisioning for the company. A couple more questions: -Is there room for luggage? -Will the stations have attendants to help passengers board and exit?","author_name":"Leonardo Lee","votes":2,"created_at":"2020-09-03T04:55:13Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-105041","answers":[{"id":105063,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:105063","answer":"Thanks for the questions Leonardo. We have proposals currently submitted for several million dollars of development/grant type projects, so we would like to see some 2021 revenue. We are going to be able to sell larger projects once we have the first system in place. Our goal is to be slightly ahead of/meet demand for systems and are building scalability and repeatability into all our design and process. We estimate system size will typically be $25-200 Million. From a production side, we should be able to double every year. I would be happy hitting $1 Billion in revenue 6-7 years from now. As far as luggage, there is space in front of the vehicle for a number of bags - what a person can comfortably carry. By putting the space for bags in front of them, we expect a lot less forgotten luggage. For lots of luggage, we will have additional luggage only vehicles that will carry around 1000 pounds and will arrive at the station at the same time as the passenger. When connecting to airport and some other locations we think these will be useful. For a ski resort development complex and winter/summer resort town that we are talking to, we would have ski carriers designed into the vehicles. We are unsure if we will need attendants at all stations or not. At first we will have them at all stations. We remotely monitor the systems and vehicles. At full scale, we expect that we will have people at large stations and that we may be able to remotely monitor small stations such as an apartment complex or business that has predominantly the same riders every day. After you ride the system once, it is very easy - select destination, get in. When the vehicle stops, you are at your destination and you get out.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":1,"created_at":"2020-09-03T12:34:43Z"}]},{"id":228793,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:228793","question":"1. Timeline for first contracts, then for first actual launch?","author_name":"Jeremy Siders","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-12-16T09:13:02Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-228793","answers":[{"id":228800,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:228800","answer":"Good questions Jeremy. With government it is always difficult to get an exact timeline. Good news is that we have money allocated to one project as well as bids in on others where we are the selected technology. Best guess is 2-4 months to contract start. 12-16 months for system to be installed, tested, and launched. We are so excited for this first launch. Yesterday we had a group of European transportation experts out to our test track. They said they were impressed with what they saw. We think that these first implementations will go very well.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-12-16T12:15:00Z"}]},{"id":225967,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:225967","question":"I THINK THIS WOULD BE GOOD IN AFRICA!!","author_name":"Stanley. Evans","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-11-18T02:09:31Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-225967","answers":[{"id":226039,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:226039","answer":"We think so too! Africa is a big continent so if you have any particular insight Stanley into where might be most receptive, we would be interested in hearing. Thanks!","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-11-18T14:13:47Z"}]},{"id":224594,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:224594","question":"New forms of transportation are always interesting and the car-centric lifestyle is just plain stupid and I commend you for looking for ways to tackle it, but I think you have some mortal obstacles that I am wondering how you plan on overcoming or react to: Doesn't just one accident like a truck hitting a pole take down the entire system? What kind of safety systems do you envision to protect riders in the event of a catastrophic failure on the track ahead? How will dozens or hundreds of people get out of these vehicles when the path ahead has crumbled in an accident while they are suspended above ground? With such a small scale vehicle with limited small \"stations\", have you done any research to see how much people are willing to use when more times than not the track will not take them where they want to go? The beauty of mass transit is the scale, ie the \"masses\", the beauty of auto travel is the flexibility, your system offers neither with more limitations than solutions. I think, however, you could have a chance at success if you ditched the public concept and explored industrial complexes where people have a more defined point to point route and explored moving goods within them.","author_name":"John Z","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-11-03T11:45:46Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-224594","answers":[{"id":224595,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:224595","answer":"Thanks for the questions John. There are so many things that we don't have space for in the short write up of Swift Rails - particularly with design and operations. Operationally we are monitoring the location (plus speed, temperature, charge level, etc.) of all the vehicles in near real time. We are also monitoring the track at the same time. If anything happens to the track we will see it in seconds and can then take corrective action. On the design side we try to keep our support poles out of the way of likely truck strikes. We can also deploy breakaway poles in high risk areas - in this case the support pole would break and support would be maintained temporarily until we can replace the pole which we would expect to do quickly. As you are suggesting, we look for locations where there is an established daily ridership - commuters going to work; university students going to class; tourists going to venues; etc. as the base system. From there we can expand to other locations that riders want to go. It is an evolutionary type of approach that we expect with many new installations - they will grow. The use case and economics for this expansion is compelling. It is great for the rider, the municipality, and Swift Rails. The larger systems also gain a greater flexibility to get to locations via multiple paths. Since we control all of the vehicles and know the paths of all riders, we can optimize this in a way that cars cannot do easily. We can also move goods with specialized vehicles up to about 1,000 pounds or so at a time. Thanks, Kevin","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-11-03T13:33:38Z"}]},{"id":223016,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:223016","question":"We want to know what you see your valuation will look like in 3 years also the income and balance statements Not to say much, I think we are very much interested in this project but then we are not opting for the crowdfunding route. We were wondering if you have provisions to accept alternative financing which should save time of WAITING SO LONG for your target to be met. With that we can cover over 50% of your target raise. Kindly reach out to me at thomas@700capital.se so we discuss further.","author_name":"Thomas Young","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-10-20T03:56:36Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-223016","answers":[{"id":272974,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:272974","answer":"For investors that want to invest over $10,000 we are also doing private placement this round. We have had requests for this and also to keep on Wefunder, so we are doing both. Same price for the stock for both sets of investors. As far as valuation, hard to say exactly what it will look like in 3 years. We did recently have a competitor (Glydways, not exactly the same thing as Swift Rails but autonomous vehicles on concrete guideways) raise $56 million - approximately 10x our valuation. Indicates that the market and underlying economics are exceptional. We think that we are a substantially better solution for most places both in terms of speed to destination and cost to construct. So potential valuation increase can be very high.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2024-01-03T14:41:57Z"}]},{"id":217719,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:217719","question":"Anything in the works for accomadating families?","author_name":"Robyn Atwell","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-09-04T19:09:09Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-217719","answers":[{"id":217786,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:217786","answer":"Yes and thanks for the question Robyn. If you had a large family, say 16, we couldn’t get everyone in the same vehicle since our largest vehicle is 4 persons. We can have 4, 4 person vehicles arrive together, board together, and travel together. This allows all 16 to get on and off together.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-09-05T13:52:25Z"}]},{"id":217619,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:217619","question":"Are there any plans to deploy this system on large college campuses or are you seeking larger metropolitan users?","author_name":"Anthony Meo","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-09-03T21:21:45Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-217619","answers":[{"id":217641,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:217641","answer":"Yes - we are in discussions with both universities and larger metropolitan regions to deploy systems. We think it is a good solution for both.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-09-04T01:42:17Z"}]},{"id":213974,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:213974","question":"Mr. Neumaier - Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions personally. (1) I see earlier this year you hoped to close in July. What happened? (2) Do you have proof of concept? (3) Using an app to get a ride works because the rides ride on roads where there are often ways to get around obstacles. Trains work on rails because they have complicated switching systems that enable one train to pass another. How will your cars get around each other? Thanks","author_name":"Steven Blumrosen","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-08-05T04:49:56Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-213974","answers":[{"id":215381,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:215381","answer":"Hi Steven - we had some requests to extend the closing date, so we did so. We do have a proof of concept that is running quite well. We will be doing a public showing of one of our vehicles at the NY Innovation Summit in October. We will release some more details when that is a little closer. In terms of traffic flow, it is sometimes easier to think of our vehicles as a cross between a train and car. All of the vehicles are independently powered and we control all of the vehicles and the switches. Stations have switches that switch vehicles off of the main line. All vehicles go the same speed on the same sections of track which maintains vehicle spacing and no vehicle needs to pass another that is not in a station. At larger stations we have multiple switches that allow a vehicle to be moved to temporary boarding areas allowing multiple people to get on different vehicles concurrently (and then start them to their destinations when people have boarded and are ready to go). So, to get a vehicle around another one we just switch one to a station and the vehicle behind it goes past. It would be easier if I could draw in this answer box but hoped this answered your question. Thanks, Kevin","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-08-15T14:35:40Z"}]},{"id":213561,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:213561","question":"I invested, but please recognize that it is 2022. Diversity and inclusion of underrepresented groups (women, BIPOC, etc) are imperative to teams, especially if you are going to do business with cities and governments, and if you will rely on the public for your product. I ultimately decided to opt in because I believe in the product and service, but I worry that in these times the team could miss opportunities or input because viewpoints and opinions aren't being share by people of different backgrounds.","author_name":"Marisa Adam","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-08-01T22:54:59Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-213561","answers":[{"id":215386,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:215386","answer":"Thanks for investing Marisa! Diversity of viewpoints and opinions are very important - it leads to better solutions. In coming up with our initial management team we needed a group of highly experienced people that would work for equity (no paycheck) for a significant amount of time. Our current mix of who we have working on the systems is pretty diverse and includes BIPOC and women. We just hire the best people and this leads to a diverse group. I strongly believe that a knowledge based network or a managed meritocracy (the best ideas get implemented) is the best management system for innovation. This allows that diversity to get heard and the best solutions to emerge.","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-08-15T14:57:49Z"}]},{"id":212373,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:212373","question":"This source: https://medium.com/@TimSylvester/i-agree-it-sounds-astronomical-but-i-actually-understated-the-costs-according-to-artba-2e8baeac2a46 is saying $2-3 million per mile of road. Where are you getting the $40 million to $2 billion number? This is clearly way off considering the total size of the economy and the miles of road in the US.","author_name":"Isaac Johnson","votes":1,"created_at":"2022-07-22T19:25:11Z","canonical_url":"https://wefunder.com/swift.rails#question-212373","answers":[{"id":212606,"entity_id":"wefunder:comment:212606","answer":"Hi Isaac - we are doing two comparisons. The approximately 40 times lower cost is comparing Swift Rails to conventional transit such as light rail systems. This is the main comparison as we are a new type of transit. We also compare ourselves to roads in one or two of our slides. The source that you cite has a higher cost of a road than we were using. We used $1 million/lane mile of roads. Everything has gone up in price so your 2017 numbers may be better. As we scale production, we believe that we will be able to achieve track production costs that will be lower than the cost of roads. This is probably already the case for the comparison between Swift Rails and elevated roads. Elevated roads are approximately 5 more expensive than surface roads. Let me know if I answered your question. Thanks, Kevin","author_name":"Kevin Neumaier","votes":0,"created_at":"2022-07-25T14:55:35Z"}]}],"faq":[{"question":"This could be an investment opportunity that one may not want to pass up; however, I have a couple of questions. 1) Is there any place in the USA or anywhere in the world that this tiny railways concept ever tested to work? 2) Building some new railways in most cities can be t...","answer":"Good questions Richard. A working passenger carrying system of this type does not currently exist anywhere. We have been told that value of the company will increase substantially once this happens. We have built a full scale prototype and tested many component pieces of the system. These match up pretty well with our calculations and are sometimes exceeding our expectations. While it is likely that we make some modifications as we go to full scale, we expect that we will be successful. Our c..."},{"question":"Hi. When do you expect to start generating revenue? Once you do, what are your goals for the first 5 years? And when would you like to hit the 1B mark in revenue? I understand that nothing is guaranteed, I just want to have an idea of the growth you are envisioning for the com...","answer":"Thanks for the questions Leonardo. We have proposals currently submitted for several million dollars of development/grant type projects, so we would like to see some 2021 revenue. We are going to be able to sell larger projects once we have the first system in place. Our goal is to be slightly ahead of/meet demand for systems and are building scalability and repeatability into all our design and process. We estimate system size will typically be $25-200 Million. From a production side, we sho..."},{"question":"Hello Mr. Neumaier, Going off questions asked by Mr. Lee on luggage and attendants at \"stations\" to help the customers get in and out of the \"carriage\": - Although the \"carriage\" design is slick it doesn't seem to be thought for people that have mobility issues and people that...","answer":"Thanks Miguel. Our \"standard\" vehicle is comfortable for most body types. A gentleman at 6'7\" described our vehicle as exceptionally comfortable. We tried to make sure that sight lines work for shorter people and kids and the response has been very positive. The vehicles are pretty spacious inside and they match up to the platform well. If a person can sit in a chair they can get into our vehicle. Unlike traditional transit, we wait until the person is in the vehicle before leaving the statio..."},{"question":"Thanks for your reply. A few more questions: 1) Will fares be a flat fee or based on distance? How much will the basic fare be? 2) Do riders need to book their rides or is it 1st come 1st serve? What if someone needs a luggage vehicle? Is it extra?","answer":"Thanks Leonardo. Pricing is difficult to answer without the specific route and user in mind - but here is an attempt. In general, we anticipate being profitable at fares similar to what is charged now by conventional transit (currently these fares represent only 30% of the average cost of the existing transit service - this means that these systems require large subsidies to operate. We operate profitably at these same prices where it is already established that there is ridership willing to ..."},{"question":"I've read about Personal Rapid Transit systems for about 25 years now. Again and again companies build little demo systems, but they never go anywhere. Why is your demo going to be different than Morgantown, Heathrow, Suncheon, Masdar, ...?","answer":"Thanks for the question Eric. The short answer is price, convenience and comfort are the primary differentiators. The somewhat longer answer - Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) has been a concept that has been around for a number of decades as you note. In many ways, it is a near perfect way for people to move around, so why haven't some earlier attempts worked out to be big commercial successes? As you say a few PRT systems have been built. Morgantown is still working and has an very good safety ..."}]}}}