As with Cumberland’s forthcoming CAM Network and the Beltline-supported Beep project in Southwest Atlanta, an autonomous, outside-the-box means of connecting to key points around the world’s busiest airport is moving forward. 

Glydways, a California-based self-driving vehicle developer, is aiming to deliver the metro’s latest on-demand automated transit pilot project at the doorstep of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in 2026.

Spearheaded by Atlanta Personal Rapid Transit Solutions, or APRTS, the initial autonomous vehicle route calls for a .5-mile guideway exclusively for Glydways shuttles that would connect the airport’s SkyTrain to the Georgia International Convention Center and Gateway Arena in College Park, and vice versa. 

But future routes, according to Glydways leadership, could be more expansive, providing last-mile airport connectivity for southside cities such as Hapeville and East Point, along with Porsche's expanded North American Headquarters and possibly Clayton County. 

Blue sections show the approved Glydways pilot project route, alongside potential future service expansions to terminals and nearby cities. Glydways, via SR

A future alternative transit connection between the airport’s domestic and international terminals could also be in the works. (As Saporta Report relayed in October, the service could help solve a primary complaint from international passengers—that connecting to MARTA from the international terminal is too difficult, or what Glydways officials called a “missing link.”) 

Efforts to improve transit connectivity around the airport date back nearly a decade, and in 2019 the ATL Airport Community Improvement Districts commissioned a feasibility study that pinpointed Personal Rapid Transit, or PRT, as the best solution, per Glydways. 

Last year the APRTS consortium, led by Glydways and partner companies, was selected as the preferred route to deliver a pilot project. 

A rendering illustrating Glydways functionality at the convention center stop on ITP Atlanta's southside. Glydways.com

According to Glydways, construction of the half-mile guideway is set to begin this year. The two-year pilot project—with “live passenger service, testing scalability, performance, and community benefit”—is scheduled to begin sometime next year, per the company. 

We’ve reached out to Glydways officials this week for more information on where the pilot initiative stands right now. This story will be update with any additional details that come. 

Plans for the pilot Glydways route in relation to Georgia International Convention Center. Glydways.com

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