In this paper a hybrid solution to the problem of robots climbing on featureless surface is presented. The research focus of wall climbing robot is on the adhesion and the mechanism of locomotion. An efficient, robust, standalone and scalable mechanism is often desired for such robots to perform many critical tasks. The performance of electrostatic adhesion can be enhanced by using flexible and soft elastic material as the dielectric to improve its resistance against peeling force. A novel multiple stage fabrication process of the layered hybrid adhesive using blade coating technique is proposed in this work. This yields a track structure that is compliant on the surface, electrically functional, and geometrically controllable. When excited by high voltage, the track becomes an active actuator. It also passively adheres to smooth surfaces with the elastomer effect. Inspired by the climbing strategy of the gecko, a solution for track locomotion is proposed by utilizing electrostatic, elastomer adhesion and tail forces simultaneously. The biomimetic tail is implemented with torsion spring design. As a result, the robot prototype ELAD (electrostatic and elastomer adhesion) can climb a slope of 80° on smooth surfaces at speed of 4 cm/s, and perch for more than 2 h using on-board power. Effects of tail design and hybrid adhesion with force analysis are numerically evaluated and presented. It is also demonstrated that the elastomer material properties for the hybrid adhesive are suitable for stable climb on vertical surfaces. Further, analysis has shown that the hybrid adhesive is able to work on surfaces with roughness value Ra within 300 nm. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.