The Road to Autonomy Episode 349 | Autonomous Private Pods, Public Prices: The $20M/Mile Solution to a $2B/Mile Problem
Nov 25, 2025
Mark Seeger, Founder and Co-CEO of Glydways, explores innovative solutions for urban congestion with on-demand autonomous pods. He discusses how traditional taxi models can exacerbate traffic issues. Instead of expensive rail systems, Glydways offers a lightweight infrastructure costing only $20M per mile. Mark highlights the potential for scaling in global markets and the need for governments to embrace this disaggregated transit model. He emphasizes affordability, safety, and the importance of transparent collaborations for future deployments.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Disaggregation Beats Traditional Rail
- Disaggregating mass transit (many small pods) can deliver train-level throughput at a fraction of infrastructure cost.
- Smaller vehicles enable pedestrian-grade lanes, flexible routing, and 90% lower capital expense per mile.
Personal Roots In Holland And Singapore
- Mark grew up in Holland and lived in Singapore, which shaped his view of effective mass transit.
- Those experiences revealed huge disparities versus U.S. transit and sparked Glideways' founding.
Mobility Expands Economic Opportunity
- Congestion shrinks people's economic radius and reduces access to jobs, housing, education and care.
- Solving urban mobility restores economic opportunity and reverses localized economic collapse in cities.