Dual-mode may solve transportation problems - Traffic - automobile guideways - Brief Article

The future solution to traffic jams will likely be a dual-mode system with automobiles traveling on special guideways at speeds up to 200 miles per hour, predicts engineer and inventor Francis D. Reynolds. "For trips of more than several miles, cars will travel automatically on high-speed dedicated guideways in a dual-mode system," he suggested to the World Future Society, Bethesda, Md.

At special stations, drivers will pay a toll and be automatically merged onto the guideway for a high-speed trip most of the way to their destination. The automobiles may be loaded onto freight pallets or ride directly on the guideways. After exiting, travelers will operate their cars as usual.

People will cruise at 200 miles per hour on the guideways between cities, nonstop, day or night. One guideway would be the equivalent of 40 highway lanes. While on the guideways, "drivers" would be able to read, sleep, or watch television, instead of clutching the wheel and fighting traffic.

Collisions will be virtually impossible. Cars on the guideway will be like boxes on a conveyor belt, traveling at the same speed and with uniform spacing.

With dual-mode, transportation won't come to a halt when the planet's petroleum is gone. Electricity to power the guideways can come from any energy source, including wind turbines and solar arrays. The dual-mode system will be twice as energy-efficient as automobiles that are driving on the highway, Reynolds estimates.

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