Are flying taxis set to soar in Japan or face turbulence from tech and safety barriers?
- A consortium is planning to kick-start flying taxis in Japan by first building ‘vertiports’ in several cities
- Such services are at least several years away from launch and even then, they can only operate in limited areas, a transport analyst says
Japan has taken a significant step in the race to be the first country to have flying taxis serving its major cities following the signing of an agreement to develop take-off and landing infrastructure.
Under the agreement, the three firms will make plans for the location, design, operation and financing of vertiports, with the first sites likely to be on floating platforms on Tokyo Bay or just off Osaka.
Transport analysts, however, caution that the launch of flying taxi services is not imminent, as no government has yet approved airborne cars, and several technical, legal and safety hurdles remain to be overcome.
“I reckon it will be at least three years and probably closer to five years before this becomes commonplace. Even then, they will have to operate in very limited areas, on specific routes and at certain heights and speeds,” said Peter Lyon, a motoring correspondent for Forbes.