When the idea of electric air taxis arose, Los Angeles was vying to be one of the first cities to use the technology to help people avoid the infamous bumper-to-bumper traffic. Some city transportation officials hoped the flying vehicles would be operational by the 2028 Olympics.
But as air taxi companies have taken further steps towards launching in other cities, Like Chicago, Los Angeles's ambitions to open citywide airways have cooled.
Urban Movement Labs, a nonprofit founded by former Mayor Eric Garcetti to focus on public transportation technology, in 2022 created a playbook on how cities could incorporate air mobility, including taxi services. But after a merger with the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator, board member Francis Pollara said he is no longer prioritizing technology.
“We were very involved in supporting Archer and the coalition of other air taxi services,” Pollara said of UML's involvement. “That work will not continue as part of the merger.”
The Los Angeles Department of Transportation, City Planning office and the mayor's office were part of Advanced Air Mobility's initial partnership with UML to think about how the technology could be integrated into the city. But neither agency answered questions about when Angelenos could expect to see air taxi services here.
“As with any new technology, the city is working with industry and our departments, and our priority is keeping Angelenos safe,” said press secretary Clara Karger.
The goal of the air taxi jets is the notion of gliding quickly over the traffic-clogged streets of Los Angeles: a 60- to 90-minute car trip could take 10 to 20 minutes in a drone-like vehicle from a so-called vertiport to other. .
To launch in Los Angeles, an air taxi service needs authorization from multiple jurisdictions, including the Federal Aviation Administration, which largely oversees airspace, operations and aircraft, and local and state agencies that set their own rules. regarding regulations and infrastructure, including permits and design plans for take-off and landing zones. While the FAA has continued to greenlight the progress of air taxi operations, less movement has been achieved at the local and state level.
Clint Harper, a community advocate in the advanced air mobility industry, said licensing requirements in California are “robust” compared to other states and any air taxi service “may be subject to stricter state oversight” before before operations begin.
The FAA cleared Santa Clara-based electric air taxi company Archer earlier this month to operate its aircraft commercially ahead of an official public launch possibly in Newark or Chicago, which the company said could be as early as 2025. .
“This milestone reflects our team's unwavering dedication to safety and operational excellence as we create one of the world's first electric air taxi services for communities across the United States with a safe, sustainable and quiet transportation solution,” said Archer founder and CEO Adam Goldstein. saying.
The four-passenger piloted plane would make quick trips with minimal downtime for charging. Archer said he has confirmed two planned routes with United Airlines at Chicago O'Hare International Airport to a destination in Chicago, which has yet to be determined, and Newark Liberty International Airport to Manhattan once its service, Midnight, is up. In use. The company has also identified five vertiport locations for service in the Bay Area, which it also hopes to launch by 2025. But that goal depends on a variety of factors, including local and state regulations and infrastructure capacity.
The company also recently signed an agreement with a private aviation terminal company to electrify more than 200 takeoff and landing sites across the country. It hopes to launch Archer in Los Angeles “as soon as possible” and is working with “infrastructure partners,” but did not provide a timeline.
The FAA previously authorized Santa Cruz-based Joby Aviation to conduct test operations. The company, which also hopes to launch in 2025 and has created a training course for pilots, agreed to partner with private jet and aircraft company Clay Lacy Aviation to develop an electric air taxi charger, which the FAA previously identified as a requirement for air transport. Taxi service plans at John Wayne Airport in Orange County. The company said it does not have a timeline for launching in Orange County, but has been discussing plans with officials and partners in the region, including John Wayne.
The FAA also recently authorized the company to develop in-house software that would include a user-friendly passenger app. It currently has no timeline for a launch in Los Angeles, but said it recently submitted a proposal to LAX “with a plan to support initial air taxi operations with minimal impact to existing airport infrastructure and operations.”
The city's Department of Transportation said it is working with mobility groups to plan new transportation technologies and previously warned that it could take years to evaluate and address challenges related to new aerial technology services. Transportation experts have said equity, accessibility, emissions and noise also remain key concerns that need to be addressed.
“No one likes the idea of the rich flying overhead, transmitting their noise and emissions to them while they're stuck in traffic,” said Harper, who helped write the UML manual.
Harper said there are opportunities, such as emergency use operations, for the technology to serve the general public. But the process will take time.
In Paris, Verocopter will test its air taxi service during the Olympic Games, Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete recently told Le Parisien. The evidence, which will not be for public use, will surely be studied carefully.
