British patent application GB 2 332 658 is not for claustrophobics. Richard
Earle of Chippenham, Wiltshire, has devised a public transport system that
scales up the old idea of using pneumatic tubes to transport documents or cash
around an office block or store. Passengers will crawl into capsules about the
width of a mattress, which will then be launched down a short connection tube
into a loop running round the entire city. There, the capsule engages with a
moving chain. The tube will contain a vacuum, so there will be no air resistance
and energy wastage, but this means each capsule will need its own internal
oxygen supply.
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