Doug Pensinger wrote:
> Do you know anyone that
> commutes on mass transit that has to wait 10-15 minutes for a bus to
> take them the last mile or two?
No. (But the people I know relying on mass transit have it worse than
that, admittedly; but they tend to either live or work in neighborhoods
where you could get killed for a mode of transportation a little less
expensive than $5K.)
> Do you know any older people that have
> trouble getting around and are thus limited as to where they can go?
Yes, but none of them can afford the $5K, and even if they could, the
particular solution given by Segway won't work very well for them. A
Lark would be a heckuva lot better.
> Do
> you know anyone that lives less than five miles from work and drives a
> behemoth vehicle that can seat eight and gets 15 mpg or less?
No. And the people I know who drive SUVs of whatever size have needs
that will not be fulfilled by Segway. The one I can most easily think
of offhand is the couple that have to drive their toddler to daycare
every morning; if it weren't for that, they'd probably use public
transportation and/or just straight walking. (You could get a good 30
minutes worth of exercise each way, between their apartment and the
building they work in.) And they got a fuel-efficient SUV. (They're
the ones with the kitten I sprayed with water, reported in another
thread.)
Now, I know people who live less than 5 miles from work by virtue of
telecommuting, but a Segway isn't going to help out with *that*. :)
They'll pay less in gasoline and car maintenence, but more in
electricity and (if they have it) heating fuel. (Natural gas or
propane, depending on circumstance.) At least they won't be driving
unneccessary SUVs to commute.
A Segway may be a great solution for some people in some cities, but
unfortunately, Austin really isn't one of the cities I'd see it as a
practical thing in. (And if you want a moped, I saw one for sale
chained up outside Waterloo Records on Monday; it may still (or once
again) be there with the phone number to call if you're interested in
buying it. A moped isn't going to work well for me at this point in my
life; it might have been nice 5 years ago.)
Julia
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