page_title: Rubber-tyred metro
section_title: Advantages
hierarchical_section_title: Rubber-tyred metro / Technology / Advantages
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Rame de la ligne D , détail de l'essieu, Lyon, France
context_page_description: A rubber-tyred metro or rubber-tired metro is a form of rapid transit system that uses a mix of road and rail technology. The vehicles have wheels with rubber tires that run on rolling pads inside guide bars for traction, as well as traditional railway steel wheels with deep flanges on steel tracks for guidance through conventional switches as well as guidance in case a tyre fails. Most rubber-tyred trains are purpose-built and designed for the system on which they operate. Guided buses are sometimes referred to as 'trams on tyres', and compared to rubber-tyred metros.
context_section_description: Compared to steel wheel on steel rail, the advantages of rubber-tyred metro systems are:
  Smoother rides (with little jostling around).
  Faster acceleration, along with the ability to climb or descend steeper slopes (approximately a gradient of 13%) than would be feasible with conventional rail tracks, which would likely need a rack instead.
  For example, the rubber-tyred Line 2 of the Lausanne Metro has grades of up to 12%.
  Shorter braking distances, allowing trains to be signalled closer together.
  Quieter rides in open air (both inside and outside the train).
  Greatly reduced rail wear with resulting reduced maintenance costs of those parts.
caption: MPL-85 rolling stock in Lyon métro
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