With the road wheels being used only for short distances at low speed, the dual-mode vehicles can be quite small. No engine bay is needed and wheel-arch intrusions are small. The same interior space as a conventional car can be achieved in a much smaller, lighter vehicle. Overall dimensions of 1.5 x 1.5 x 3m should be sufficient for most uses. This will still allow six comfortable seats or two standard pallets.

Private cars
Except for special purpose vehicles, these vehicles should replace conventional private cars, retaining their attractions while adding to speed, comfort, economy and safety.

Public Service and Taxis
Vehicles will be available at track access points for use on or off the track. Off track use being restricted to holders of standard licenses. Bus and taxi services will be replaced by this system, with local taxi services ferrying passengers to and from local track access points, giving cheap, timely and comfortable transport for all.

Freight
Freight vehicles will be either manned, such as small vans with provision for a driver, or unmanned for driverless operation on track. All vehicles may be remotely controlled, or slaved to a manned vehicle on and off track. Standard vehicles will hold 2 standard pallets. Perhaps 75% of freight could be carried by this system. Greater vehicle gross weights could be accommodated within the track's design loading, by spacing out heavy vehicles. An advantage of small, efficient goods vehicles, will be a reduction in warehousing. Suppliers could dispatch goods directly to users, instead of sending them on a heavy goods vehicle (HGV)for warehousing and combination with other goods before delivery by another HGV.

What's the background to all this?