Driverless pods could ferry people from Bolton town centre to the Royal Bolton Hospital under plans put forward.

Bolton Council is to look into the possibility of a 24-hour, self-driving, transport system between Bolton interchange and the hospital.

The "Connected and Autonomous Mobility System" (CAMS) would run at least in part on a railway line between the two hubs in the borough.

Bolton Council, in partnership with Dromos Mobility and Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), submitted a successful bid for £199,760 to the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles, itself a part of the Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Transport, this year.

On Wednesday a report for consideration by its cabinet member for transport, Hamid Khurram, asks for the approval of its use to to look into the possibility of the 24-hour, self-driving, transport system by way of a study lasting for almost a year.

The report reads: "Bolton Council worked up a proposal with partners, Dromos Mobility and Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), and we received notification of our successful bid for £199,760 to undertake a feasibility study for an on-demand, 24-hour, self-driving system running on a decommissioned railway line connecting the Bolton Interchange to the hospital.

"The feasibility study will consider the potential to integrate the service through infrastructure projects."

ALSO READ: Bolton: Metrolink extension illustrative, Rishi Sunak says.

According to the Dromos Mobility website the idea of its autonomous electric vehicles is to provide the service of private transport at the price of public transport.

It says there is space for four people allowing users of the autonomous electric vehicles to travel with their family, their friends, or by themselves across the network.

It says its service costs around 50 per cent less and covers around 50 per cent less space in its surroundings in comparison to any alternative, rail-based service.

Meanwhile safety and security on its infrastructure, which is separate to other infrastructure such as the roads and the rails, is assured by a range of technology including the use of artificial intelligence to track traffic and to alter its actions accordingly.

The co-founder of Dromos Mobility, Dr Antje Voelker, said: "This project represents a step towards our vision of on-demand, affordable, autonomous transit globally."

Self-driving vehicles are fast approaching commercialisation in markets across the world. By 2035, 40 per cent of new cars in the UK could have self-driving capabilities.

This article was written by Jack Tooth. To contact him, email jack.tooth@newsquest.co.uk or follow @JTRTooth on Twitter.