1. Air motor

1.1 Age-old applications

The first applications of compressed-air-powered vehicles date back to the 19th century, when railroads, mining networks and tunnelling were developed to avoid the pollution and fire hazards inherent in steam locomotives. One example is the compressed-air streetcar, a locomotion system named Mékarski after its inventor, railway engineer Louis Mékarski. Introduced in 1879 in Nantes, then in the Paris region, they ran for 40 years.