New GM car?

[pied]

http://www.insideautomotive.com/images/T-yyy-GMsegway.jpg

NEW YORK - A solution to the world’s urban transportation problems could lie in two wheels not four, according to executives for General Motors Corp. and Segway Inc.

The companies announced Tuesday that they are working together to develop a two-wheeled, two-seat electric vehicle designed to be a fast, safe, inexpensive and clean alternative to traditional cars and trucks for cities across the world.

The Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility, or PUMA, project also would involve a vast communications network that would allow vehicles to interact with each other, regulate the flow of traffic and prevent crashes from happening.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30077578/

[RedRage00]

http://www.insideautomotive.com/images/T-yyy-GMsegway.jpg

NEW YORK - A solution to the world’s urban transportation problems could lie in two wheels not four, according to executives for General Motors Corp. and Segway Inc.

The companies announced Tuesday that they are working together to develop a two-wheeled, two-seat electric vehicle designed to be a fast, safe, inexpensive and clean alternative to traditional cars and trucks for cities across the world.

The Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility, or PUMA, project also would involve a vast communications network that would allow vehicles to interact with each other, regulate the flow of traffic and prevent crashes from happening.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30077578/

That wouldn't work in Dallas lol

I can't imagine flying down the tollway in that LOL

[F18mustang]

Death on two wheels.

[rocketgrl94]

uhhh rollcage?...no protection whatsoever...i wont be caught "DEAD" in that thing:D

[RedRage00]

I wonder if that thing could make it up a hill in San Francisco? :D

[pied]

uhhh rollcage?...no protection whatsoever...i wont be caught "DEAD" in that thing:D

ummm it will avoid accidents.

Ideally, the vehicles would also be part of a communications network that through the use of transponder and GPS technology would allow them to drive themselves. The vehicles would automatically avoid obstacles such as pedestrians and other cars and therefore never crash, Burns said.

As a result, the PUMA vehicles would not need air bags or other traditional safety devices and include safety belts for “comfort purposes” only, he said.

[drgnbkr]

What a joke!

[Slim-Rob]

people, don't expect to see something like this soon. When they talk about "drive itself, avoid accidents" etc they are referring to a future where a lot of vehicles are like this.

It's impossible to avoid idiots, ESP for a computer to calculate what a morons next move is. A good driver can see a moron 2-3 seconds away from collision, a computer would use a sensor, and it would not be accurate. If someone runs a red light and is about to t-bone this thing, how will it avoid it? Jump up in the air? :rolleyes:

[rocketgrl94]

ummm it will avoid accidents.

im still not fond of the thing, and im not relying on a "communications network" yeah you may be able to steer it but no that is to damn small just like the smart car...dont want it

[tayb]

It will take a highway full of these things and they would have to be driving themselves to avoid accidents.

Not to mention they look ridiculous.

[pied]

It will take a highway full of these things and they would have to be driving themselves to avoid accidents.

Not to mention they look ridiculous.

I know I never see motorcycles or scooters on the road....

Also, they are not meant for the highway.


The companies announced Tuesday that they are working together to develop a two-wheeled, two-seat electric vehicle designed to be a fast, safe, inexpensive and clean alternative to traditional cars and trucks for cities across the world.

[tayb]

I know I never see motorcycles or scooters on the road....

Also, they are not meant for the highway.

No one ever tried to convince me a motorcycle was a safe vehicle to travel on.

Ok. It would take a city full of these things, as in it was the only car allowed on the streets and they drove themselves, to prevent accidents from happening.

[su4c]

It looks like a f'n wheelchair with a wheelie bar and a windshield. You couldn't get me to buy that... in fact you'd have to pay ME just to ride around in it.

[Firebird]

Not a bad idea at all. I see two keys in getting it to work:

1. Implementation of the communication network. It would need to be expanisve over the urban area in question with dedicated lanes/streets accessible only to similar vehicles.

2. Affordability. No one would make this their sole mode of transport, but it could make significant sense as a 2nd or 3rd vehicle. For instance, if you could buy two of these things for the price of one normal sized family sedan. Mom and Dad could both have one for their personal errands or commutes, while maintaining one family car to ferry kids around in/take on trips/etc.

If I lived in a city that had implemented the network, which covered the bulk of the city and surrounding areas, and it was affordable, I could really get into something like this.

I went home to lunch today and drove a four door sedan with space for five comfortably. Not a "big" car by any means, but the vast bulk of the time I spend in it, I am alone and not carrying any major cargo. Why not have a little runabout with room for one/two max to get me back and forth to work/to the store/etc and maintain a car just for when I need it. Makes lots of sense, again, especially if you could buy two of these for less than the price of a 2nd car.

[the_phoenix612]

Not a bad idea at all. I see two keys in getting it to work:

1. Implementation of the communication network. It would need to be expanisve over the urban area in question with dedicated lanes/streets accessible only to similar vehicles.

2. Affordability. No one would make this their sole mode of transport, but it could make significant sense as a 2nd or 3rd vehicle. For instance, if you could buy two of these things for the price of one normal sized family sedan. Mom and Dad could both have one for their personal errands or commutes, while maintaining one family car to ferry kids around in/take on trips/etc.

If I lived in a city that had implemented the network, which covered the bulk of the city and surrounding areas, and it was affordable, I could really get into something like this.

I went home to lunch today and drove a four door sedan with space for five comfortably. Not a "big" car by any means, but the vast bulk of the time I spend in it, I am alone and not carrying any major cargo. Why not have a little runabout with room for one/two max to get me back and forth to work/to the store/etc and maintain a car just for when I need it. Makes lots of sense, again, especially if you could buy two of these for less than the price of a 2nd car.

They say the network is purely communications from car to car?

And pricing is supposed to be 1/3 to 1/4 the price of the average family car now.

[drgnbkr]

The segway was going to revolutionize the world...nobody wanted them...do you ever see them anywhere except with a fat mall cop on it?

[pied]

The segway was going to revolutionize the world...nobody wanted them...do you ever see them anywhere except with a fat mall cop on it?

Did anyone read the article or even the brief snippet that I copied? or did you guys just look at the pictures?

A solution to the world’s urban transportation problems could lie in two wheels not four, according to executives for General Motors Corp. and Segway Inc.

[Firebird]

Did anyone read the article or even the brief snippet that I copied? or did you guys just look at the pictures?

The major diff. between this and the Segway is that this is designed to operate on roads and can for the most part use an already built infrastructure. The Segway was going to be used on sidewalks, which many places don't maintain and which weren't built large enough for the scooters.

That said, getting localities to sink the cost into the communications network and dedicated lanes/streets for these things represents a huge obstacle to success. It's going to take a concerted effort in the face of political backlash. Just like mass transit won't work unless cities simply stop enlarging roads and instead sink all that funding into upgrading light rail and buses. It won't be popular, but until you make the alternative more costly, people won't go for it.

[RedRage00]

Did anyone read the article or even the brief snippet that I copied? or did you guys just look at the pictures?

I just looked at the pictures.

[pied]

The major diff. between this and the Segway is that this is designed to operate on roads and can for the most part use an already built infrastructure. The Segway was going to be used on sidewalks, which many places don't maintain and which weren't built large enough for the scooters.

That said, getting localities to sink the cost into the communications network and dedicated lanes/streets for these things represents a huge obstacle to success. It's going to take a concerted effort in the face of political backlash. Just like mass transit won't work unless cities simply stop enlarging roads and instead sink all that funding into upgrading light rail and buses. It won't be popular, but until you make the alternative more costly, people won't go for it.

It amazes me what we get used to. If I go on vacation to Europe/New York and stay at a hotel and have to walk a couple of blocks to the subway, I think nothing of it. When I go to a campground or whatnot and have to walk a quarter mile to breakfast/lunch/dinner it seems to come with the territory.

Now walking to lunch a quarter mile when my car is there? heck no. Someone is driving.

[Firebird]

It amazes me what we get used to. If I go on vacation to Europe/New York and stay at a hotel and have to walk a couple of blocks to the subway, I think nothing of it. When I go to a campground or whatnot and have to walk a quarter mile to breakfast/lunch/dinner it seems to come with the territory.

Now walking to lunch a quarter mile when my car is there? heck no. Someone is driving.

I agree with this completely. I also know historically the concerted effort that governments made in laying out cities and a transportation network specifically to benefit the auto industry.

However, it's a lot harder to undo all of that. Once it's built you can't unbuild it. But, I think it's becoming ever more apparent that getting more cars on the road is not an unqualified good goal.

[RedRage00]

It amazes me what we get used to. If I go on vacation to Europe/New York and stay at a hotel and have to walk a couple of blocks to the subway, I think nothing of it. When I go to a campground or whatnot and have to walk a quarter mile to breakfast/lunch/dinner it seems to come with the territory.

Now walking to lunch a quarter mile when my car is there? heck no. Someone is driving.

Yeah, but I think its easier to walk in places like New York than say Arlington or Flower Mound.

When I was in NY I had no problem walking all over, but its different here.

[JagFan]

Not a bad idea at all. I see two keys in getting it to work:

1. Implementation of the communication network. It would need to be expanisve over the urban area in question with dedicated lanes/streets accessible only to similar vehicles.
2. Affordability. No one would make this their sole mode of transport, but it could make significant sense as a 2nd or 3rd vehicle. For instance, if you could buy two of these things for the price of one normal sized family sedan. Mom and Dad could both have one for their personal errands or commutes, while maintaining one family car to ferry kids around in/take on trips/etc.

If I lived in a city that had implemented the network, which covered the bulk of the city and surrounding areas, and it was affordable, I could really get into something like this.

I went home to lunch today and drove a four door sedan with space for five comfortably. Not a "big" car by any means, but the vast bulk of the time I spend in it, I am alone and not carrying any major cargo. Why not have a little runabout with room for one/two max to get me back and forth to work/to the store/etc and maintain a car just for when I need it. Makes lots of sense, again, especially if you could buy two of these for less than the price of a 2nd car.

That is a lot closer to being finished than you think.

[pied]

Yeah, but I think its easier to walk in places like New York than say Arlington or Flower Mound.

When I was in NY I had no problem walking all over, but its different here.


In many cases you are correct, basically a lack of sidewalks. I think it's more a plethora of big streets and parking lots. I know I get pissed having to park at the back of a Target/shopping mall parking lot, and have to walk 150 yards. Other situations, I wouldn't care a bit about walking that distance.

[Firebird]

Yeah, but I think its easier to walk in places like New York than say Arlington or Flower Mound.

When I was in NY I had no problem walking all over, but its different here.

See my above post. It's no coincidence that cities and towns built mostly in the automotive era are harder to walk in. They were designed to be. It became a self reinforcing cycle. Governments wanted to encourage car ownership, more people bought cars, they demanded communities built to suit their cars, etc....

And it is tough to undo that. Once a town is built, it's built.

[Firebird]

In many cases you are correct, basically a lack of sidewalks. I think it's more a plethora of big streets and parking lots. I know I get pissed having to park at the back of a Target/shopping mall parking lot, and have to walk 150 yards. Other situations, I wouldn't care a bit about walking that distance.

Have you ever tried to actually walk "to somewhere" in suburbia? It's really an unpleasant experience. You traipse across parking lots, sidewalks are sparse, lots of places where you just have to walk on the shoulder. Plus, you draw strange looks. It's like something is wrong with you.

Mrs. Bird commented on this extensively when she first moved here and had to wait to get her DL.

What's really interesting is how car culture changes how we do everything. We even shop for food differently. It's a completely different thing to load up on food for a week and carry it home in your car as opposed to stop in on the way home every day or two. You buy completely different things.