10 years later, the sad lesson of the Segway: The suburbs killed your rocket-pack

“Instead of becoming the next Bill Gates or Henry Ford, Kamen might find himself ending up like another great American inventor, Preston Tucker, who in the 1940s built the Tucker, a car too far ahead of its time.”

I think the explanation is far simpler. The Segway revealed what we in the suburbs are getting to know more and more: You cannot walk or bike from any place of significance to any other place of significance in most modern areas of human habitation.

In a world largely created for cars, a conveyance like the Segway is nothing but a toy.

Ten years on, and I've neither ridden one nor seen one at use "in the wild" by anyone other than a mall cop or city tourist.

 

Read the rest at: » A Segway anniversary JIMROMENESKO.COM

Comments

[LH]

I grew up in Franklin, and I had a segway for about a year before I went off to college. It was a childhood dream to get one and I think my dad traded something for it. My parents aren't the Wyndham Hills type by any means. Once I had one I realized that I couldn't really go anywhere with it, unless I put it in my car and took it to a real place. I could get it into my little car by myself, but it took a while (I'm a 5'2" female) so I didn't do it too often. I took lots of "lazy walks" with it on the sidewalks of Franklin that don't go anywhere. My senior picture with it was in a Goodstone ad. My dad eventually traded it for a lawn mower. What does that tell you about suburban life?

Now that I live on the East Side (about North and Prospect), I totally want my segway back. I would use it all the time now. It would be perfect for those slightly longer but still walking distance trips between 1/2 and 1 mile like UWM and Pick 'n Save.

[John Michlig]

If the Segway could gain a foothold as a Zipcar-type shared device, we'd see them all over the place downtown.

My eyes would have popped out of my head if I would have happened upon you and your Segway here in Franklin ....

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damn it is too pricey for a single passenger ride make this affordable to the masses then we will see a lot of these in the wild