Segways

[rdaner]

I am in Prague and have noticed, in between Neo-Gothic masterpieces, a lot of Segways. At first I assumed that they were part of one of the Segway tours that are popping up but they seem to be everywhere. Yesterday I saw a woman loading groceries into a small box on wheels behind a neon pink segway.

Are they appearing in Toronto as a daily transport option?

 

[interchange42]

No, thank goodness. Are they even legal here? I would not want to see one coming at me on a crowded sidewalk, and they have no place on the road.

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[MetroMan]

Well, instead, we have an epidemic of sidewalk scooters.
People who obviously don't need them are riding them for convenience and most time these things are going fast.

If scooters are allowed, why not Segways? Segways don't take up more space than a regular walking human and are controlled so instinctively, it's as if your brain is telling it to move. They can go as slow as a walk or a steady brisk jog.

I see nothing wrong with them and look forward to seeing them pop up in our city as a compliment to public transit.

 

[AndreaPalladio]

I was in Chicago last week and they are much used there - mostly by police and park staff, but several appeared to be used by civilians.

 

[interchange42]

Segways take up twice the space of a walking human.

On crowded sidewalks they remain 63 cm wide whereas I'm a more svelte 44 cm wide. Front-to-back they're 48 cm long, I'm 31 cm long. If need be I can turn on a dime, whereas they need at least a toonie.

You can bump into someone barreling along on two feet, or you can bump into someone barreling along on two wheels at a higher speed, with another 47.7kg to add to their momentum, and with some metal, rubber, and hard plastic to protect them and injure you.

If we all buy segways, eventually we'll all need them, because we'll have removed yet another form of exercise from our daily life, and we'll get fatter and fatter, all the while using more of the world's resources to do it.

Sure they're cool, but boy are they stupid in most everyday circumstances.

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[Prometheus The Supremo]

No, thank goodness. Are they even legal here? I would not want to see one coming at me on a crowded sidewalk, and they have no place on the road.

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leagal as an assistive device.

 

[Observer Walt]

I'm with interchange; these are a bit of a hazard and completely unnecessary for most people. They should be limited to police (useful for park patrols, etc.), and those with legitimate medical limitations who may find them a viable transportation option.

 

[Hydrogen]

They (Segways) are most annoying when the rider is bolting down the sidewalk at high speed. But the same goes for high speed scooters, wheelchairs, bikers, bladers and joggers who otherwise see no problem with moving at high velocity along a crowded sidewalk.

 

[adma]

I am in Prague and have noticed, in between Neo-Gothic masterpieces, a lot of Segways. At first I assumed that they were part of one of the Segway tours that are popping up but they seem to be everywhere. Yesterday I saw a woman loading groceries into a small box on wheels behind a neon pink segway.

Are they appearing in Toronto as a daily transport option?

My immediate impulse was to reply thusly

 

[arnold]

i see the odd segway tooling around down here in san diego. and as much as i dislike them, they seem to make more sense in the outer suburbs where the sidewalks are empty and the distances between destinations are in that strange neither region, where its too far to walk but seems silly to drive...

either way, they move fast and take up a lot of sidewalk, so i'd prefer it if they just used the bike lanes instead and left the sidewalk to the pedestrians.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

don't forget about manestrians.

 

[Sir Novelty Fashion]

Segways are not, to the best of my knowledge, currently sanctioned by the MTO for use on public roads. That's why you can find them in private spaces like the Distillery, but nowhere else.

 

[adma]

Though it'd be surreal fun if we can convince Glenn De Baeremaeker to commute downtown via Segway for a day...

 

[PukeGreen]

I've seen the odd Segway in the business district and on Queen West. They have been ridden by suits and hipsters, respectively, who weren't obviously disabled (though of course you can never make assumptions, I know). I'm still fuzzy on the legality of them. It's too bad they can't ride on the road, maybe, where they wouldn't endanger pedestrians because they are a pretty cool idea... better than a car, no?

On the other note, I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one annoyed by the high speed of those scooter things the elderly and disabled scream around on. In the St. Lawrence Market hood there is a ton of them, and many seem to insist on riding at full speed at all times, even when the sidewalks are crowded with slow-moving pedestrians.

Worst of all, they are so quiet that they can sneak up on you without noticing... a few times I have almost stepped into the path of one by mistake as it zoomed past. They're a good idea, but why do they need to go so much faster than your average pedestrian can walk? I'm a fast walker but those things have me beat, hands down.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

They're a good idea, but why do they need to go so much faster than your average pedestrian can walk?

i would see it as a safety issue. pedestrians run so scooters need to "run" also. imagine not being able to get away from a bad situation.

going fast among slow moving people isn't wise though since sidewalk traffic is unpredictable. they should slowdown around people.