The primary aim in the design of suspension systems using controlled d.c. electromagnets is to achieve an appropriate stability margin. When such a system is employed for suspension of passenger-carrying vehicles, however, a number of characteristics associated with vehicle dynamics will have to be considered in addition to the stability requirements. Some of these are suspension stiffness, damping and dynamic response and disturbance stability. A unified procedure to formulate the class of feedback control laws required for a single-magnet suspension system to obtain appropriate stability and ride characteristics corresponding to low-speed (up to 70 k.p.h.) urban transportation systems is presented in this paper.