The problem with train service is the stops. Specifically, the stops other than yours. What you'd really like is a train that stops to pick you up, stops to let you off, and goes non-stop between thopse two stations. Zoom!
Some systems try to approximate this with express trains or "baby bullets". Bah! They still make stops, plus you now have to transfer. Then there's the dream of having an automated multi-modal capsule for each passenger, taking them door to door by the most efficient method. Maybe someday, but not any time soon.
So, can we come up with a train system not too different from current technology that could give each passenger a non-stop run from their origin to their destination? Maybe!
Let's assume one new piece of technology: automated coupling and uncoupling of railcars while the train is moving. Here's what we do with it. As the train approaches a station, the last railcar uncouples, slows down, and stops. The rest of the train proceeds without slowing down. The railcar in the station unloads and loads passengers, then starts up again. The following train catches up to it and they couple together. Now it is the first railcar in the train. The new passengers walk back through the train to the railcar that will stop at their destination station, then take a seat there. Prominent electronic signage and color coding helps them figure out which railcar they want.
Here's an animation demonstrating the system.
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