Major campuses in Virginia will soon face transportation problems from the expected twenty - five percent increase in the student population in the year 2001. The sudden increase in the number of students will be caused by the 'baby bommers' children - the 'bommlets' who will be seeking higher education opportunities at colleges and universities. The large university of Virginia Tech and the adjoining town of Blacksburg must work in cooperation with planners, developers and government agencies for the projected increases in off-campus housing and transportation demands.

This project is a study into the transportation issues and land use changes associated with developing a Personal Rapid Transit system (PRT) and the projected off-campus student housing increases that will effect Blacksburg and Virginia Tech after the year 2000.

PRT is a transportation system that moves people in separately operating vehicles that travel on a guideway. Vehicles "float" on an air cushion as horizontal side - wheels move the electrically run vehicle along the guideway. Each vehicle is computer operated from a control station and is user demand - responsive for passenger destination requests. Transportation service is available all the time by user demand that makes travel more convenient than other modes of commuter transit.