Impact studies of the Morgantown People Mover (MPMI were conducted for two separate phases of construction. Estimates of MPM corridor travel by mode were made before and after opening of phase 1 in October 1975. Estimates 9f travel by mode, user group, and trip purpose were also made before and after the opening of the expanded system in August 1979. Highly similar impacts resulted both times. Several thousand person trips were diverted from the automobile to the MPM. Users, who are primarily but not exclusively students and faculty, expressed levels of satisfaction with the system nearly as high as users of private automobiles. Despite initial concern about safety before operation began, users now perceive MPM to be extremely safe.

In October 1975, the first phase of the Morgantown People Mover (MPM) system (refer red to in the past as the Personal Rapid Transit System) was opened for passenger service. MPM is a revolutionary new mode of public transportation, built as a research development and demonstration project by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA)• Because this system was the first of its kind ever operated in a city, it provided a unique opportunity to study the interaction between a new mode and its service area.