Most transport media in use today are generally fossil fuel powered. The reason for this is the ease of use and the existence of mature technologies harnessing this fuel source. Fossil fuels represent a concentrated, relatively compact source of energy. The drawbacks of such transportation media are that they are heavily polluting, and rely on limited energy sources. Many ideas exist which try to either harness renewable forms of energy, more efficiently use fossil fuel, or use human power, or some hybrid of these, to move people and things. The list below contains some forms of transport not in general use, but considered as possibilities in the future.

• Air-propelled train (proposed by Ray Bradbury in 1953)
• Bounce tube pneumatic travel (Proposed by Robert A. Heinlein in 1956)
• Copter harness (proposed by Robert A. Heinlein in 1954)
• Flying car
• Gravitic repulsion elevator (proposed by Isaac Asimov in 1951)
• Hoverboard, as seen in the movie Back to the Future Part II
• Hyperdrive faster than light (proposed by Isaac Asimov in 1951)
• Jet boots
• Light sail (proposed by Jack Vance in 1962)
• Magnetic levitation train (Maglev)
• Rolling road (proposed by Robert A. Heinlein in 1940)
• Projectile vehicle (proposed by Jules Verne in 1867)
• Slidewalk (proposed by Robert A. Heinlein in 1948)
• mass Space transport
• Tractor beam (proposed by E.E. Doc Smith in 1942)
• Teleportation, such as the transporter from Star Trek
• Wormhole gate (proposed by Robert A. Heinlein in 1955)