Driving through the Alps recently, I couldn't help be struck by the problems of mountain driving. Going uphill, you burn shedloads of fuel, overheat your engine and have a real hard time in the snow. Downhill, you burn out your brakes, stand a good chance of being run into my a mad local driver (any tourist who causes an accident in the mountains is an honarary local) and it isn't much easier in the snow. All the cars cause a major pollution problem in an area that deserves to be kept as clear as possible.

The answer came to me as I was being transported up to the top of the mountain in a funicular. The funicul-car. The roadway is split into two and a metal moving belt installed, either one long one or, more likely, in sections. The surface of the belt allows the vehicle to sink into it, thereby providing location for the vehicles. you drive onto the funiculcar and stop. The power derived from the vehicles coming down is used to lift the other vehicles going up. When there is excess energy, it is stored in batteries, this would provide sufficent braking for times when there are more cars going down. Electricity is used for times when there are more cars going up, paid for by a toll.

Instantly, no local pollution, no wear/tear on your car, no impact of weather (the friction would keep the temperature of moving parts sufficiently high to avoid freezing solid), no accidents. No worries.
-- hamiltonpruim, Mar 11 2005

Car Escalator Car_20Escalator
redundant, sorry [FarmerJohn, Mar 11 2005]

FIRST!!!

HAHA LOL...

...um, anyhow. how come no comments in like 3 years? NOt such a bad idea, really. Here, have a charity bun.
-- Custardguts, Jan 20 2008


"HAHA LOL"????? What is this, Facebook, already?
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Jan 20 2008


You might not have actually been first, [Custardguts]. There could have been any number of earlier annos that disappeared when accounts were deleted, for example. Or perhaps [hamiltonpruim] has chosen to delete all annos with the arrival of each new year.

Is that charity bun the one you dropped on the floor?
-- Canuck, Jan 20 2008



random, halfbakery