Segways banned in Britain

[sanddrag]

Originally Posted by Elgin Clock

Now it's like 25 bucks every 5-6 days or so.

Double the dollars or halve time for my case. Commuting is still cheaper than living closer to (or at) school though.

[Denman]

Well, i'm disappointed, personally, i have never seen a segway in britain (only at new york regional in fact) and even i could ride that after about 5 minutes practise.
to be honest, there are a lot of pointless laws like that, and it just takes some interpretation, for example, theoretically if you have a taxi, you have to keep a bale of hay for the horse in the boot (trunk) of the taxi for it....

[Jon K.]

Originally Posted by Ashley Weed

The worse that I have ever done in any crowded situation is ran over people's toes, and to tell you the truth - my meager few pounds and my P's weight is a lot less than the "Average American Man" you come by these day's so I highly doubt I've ever even bruised anyone in this situation.

At one Bash @ the Beach someone had their seg, and I purposefully had one of my friends run over my foot while riding this seway(with owner permission of course) and it didn't hurt me a bit. Someone stepping on my foot hurts more then the segway running over it did.

[Ashley Weed]

I really is a shame all of the places that are baning the Seg, or are on the fence. I am hoping with the gen 2's a wider range of the population will start to purchase them, and thus push politicians to take a stance on the situation. This may cause the naysayers to follow along with our evolving culture in the end.

[Courtneyb1023]

I love and appreciate the Segway and wouldn't mind having one someday. But, i agree with previous statements that it may not be practical as an everyday mode of transportation. If you are traveling a long distance, a car would be a better choice. If you are traveling a short distance, though better than driving, walking seems like the winner in my opinion. I guess with the percentage of overweight people in this country specifically, anything that gets us up and moving is a plus. Maybe that's a contributing factor to the British ban on the Segway, they are looking at the longterm health benefits of walking or biking over motorized device. maybe not..just an opinion.

Courtneyb

[Richard Wallace]

Originally Posted by Courtneyb1023

...I guess with the percentage of overweight people in this country specifically, anything that gets us up and moving is a plus.

You may have hit on the real long-term market driver for Segways and any future similar personal mobility devices -- obesity. Yesterday I heard an NPR piece citing recent research that shows 25% of today's Americans are obese, compared with 7% in some reference year (20 years ago, I think).

Right now the Segway is seen by most people as toy for well-heeled technology enthusiasts. In a few years it may be seen as a mobility aid for fat people.

[BTW, at 72" height and 215 lb., I am clearly overweight and borderline obese by CDC standards. So maybe I'll be one of the Segway-riding fat people myself.]

[Alan Anderson]

Originally Posted by MikeDubreuil

A lot of people have been saying the Segway is safe. Can anyone link to any research that says a Segway is safe in public places?

Yes.

Originally Posted by Quebec Department of Transport

No incident or serious injury, nor any Segway/pedestrian collision or physical interference, was reported during either of the two phases of evaluation, where distances totalling more than 9,000 km were covered.

[Pat Fairbank]

Originally Posted by Alan Anderson

Yes.

And yet 3 years after that study was done, there is still no legislation here that either specifically allows or bans Segways on sidewalks and bike paths. Of course, I've never actually seen or heard of anyone else owning a Segway in Quebec, so I imagine it's not a terribly urgent issue for the government to address.

[Richard Wallace]

Originally Posted by Pat Fairbank

And yet 3 years after that study was done, there is still no legislation here that either specifically allows or bans Segways on sidewalks and bike paths. Of course, I've never actually seen or heard of anyone else owning a Segway in Quebec, so I imagine it's not a terribly urgent issue for the government to address.

Actually the Canadian government has only had the results for a few months.

In 2003, the Centre for Electric Vehicle Experimentation in Quebec (CEVEQ), in partnership with the Quebec Department of Transport (MTQ) and Transport Canada, carried out the first phase of a pilot project to evaluate the Segway™ HT Electronic Personal Assistive Mobility Device (EPAMD) and an electric scooter. ...

Following the tabling of the phase 1 report, MTQ and SAAQ indicated they were in favour of conducting a second phase of evaluation, under certain conditions, of the Segway EPAMD alone. The authorities did not consider the electric scooter safe enough for experimentation on public roadways. ...

Phase 2 of the project was, therefore, concerned only with Segway EPAMDs. The study was conducted during the summer and autumn of 2005 ...

Give your MPs some time; they're only politicians, after all. And it is just possible that one or two other Provinces may want to conduct their own research.

[krieger]

think a little bit outside the box here, it probably not the apparent "danger" from a segway but the money they get- you pay a congestion charge to sit in ken livingston's traffic jams every day (8 pounds i believe) and the taxes from the gas you use. while they do waive the congestion charge for hybrids- they still use gas and the cars are so overpriced anyways that the taxes from them cover it. anyone who reads this should look up the peel p50: 106mpg from a 49cc moped engine, it has to pay congestion charge while a lexus hybrid suv at ~30mpg doesnt.

[Pat Fairbank]

On this topic, I found out the hard way a couple of months ago that Segway use is banned on streets and sidewalks in the province of Ontario.

I was gliding home from work one afternoon (a 2.3 km trip) when a squad car pulled across three lanes of traffic and stopped next to me on the wrong side of the road, and the police officer inside asked me to stop and dismount my Segway. After spending ten minutes on the radio confirming things with her dispatcher, she informed me that it is illegal to ride a Segway on public property in Ontario, unless you have a disability, or are an on-duty police officer or postal delivery worker participating in a particular study. The officer let me go with a warning, but said that if I was stopped again my Segway would be impounded and I would be subject to a fine ranging from $250 to $2500!

So since then I've been polluting the environment and contributing to traffic by taking my car to work (or sometimes I just walk, if time and the weather permit).

[artdutra04]

Originally Posted by Budda648

Only realize what? I know I don't share the same sentiment as the majority of ChiefDelphi users and the FIRST community, but I don't see the practicality of using a Segway daily. Walking is just as easy and consumes less space on the sidewalks. Now, if you have an injury or something of the sort that doesn't allow you to walk for very long then be my guest, ride a Segway. It's a cool invention and all.

It all depends on how one lives. I use my Segway almost daily - and not just for fun. And with the large growth of paved bicycle (linear) trails in Connecticut, the commute options for Segway owners are constantly growing. My father has said when gas hits $4.00 a gallon, he'd purchase a Segway to commute to work. And after doing the math, he'd only have to commute to work on it 1/3 of the year for about 2 1/2 years and it would pay for itself in savings (gas, vehicle wear-and-tear, etc).

And Segways do not occupy that much additional space on a sidewalk than a pedrestrian. The only thing that's wider is about 3-4 inches on either side of the wheelbase, which are the wheels. And even then, whenever I'm on a sidewalk and a pedrestrian is coming, I'll move out of the way for them.

Originally Posted by Budda648

Heh... Highway Act of 1835 was used to ban it. Weird.

Back in 1835, you could count on one hand how many steam-powered railroads there were in Britain. Cars, trains, planes, trolleys, subways, electricity, or even modern bicycles had either yet to be invented or widely adopted. Although there are some laws which may stand the trials of time and continue to be valid, laws which deal with technology need to keep pace with current needs and inventions.

To use a law from 1835 to ban Segways, is in my opinion, a lame attempt by the ignorant to ban something based on biased opinions. I can't stress enough how many people's opinions of Segways have changed for the better after they've rode one around for five to ten minutes.

[Grogs]

finally someone with half a brain, segways are nothing but a dangerous nuisance

[basicxman]

youre right, this was coming to them but i find this an outrage!!!