There were quite a few claims made for the Segway Personal Transporter when it was unveiled to much fanfare in 2001. One was that the device would change the world like no other invention since the invention of the steam engine. Another was that Segways would become ubiquitous in a few years.
None of those claims has been realized.
Many Segways toil away out of public sight in large warehouse buildings or factory complexes.
In Fort Wayne, however, you might just see a Segway used in public .... by a public official.
Allen County Commissioner Bill Brown was tooling about last night on his personal Segway when a group of us who had just left the City Council meeting encountered him at the corner of Calhoun and Berry Street in downtown Fort Wayne.
Commissioner Brown extolled the virtues of the Segway. He gave an account of easily and swiftly moving between five or six appointments yesterday afternoon which were geographically spread across a wide swath of downtown and near-downtown points.
One advantage of using a Segway downtown: one can avoid the extra blocks traveled by a car in navigating Fort Wayne's one-way streets.
Photo credit: Fort Wayne Observed | Mitch Harper. Photo transmitted by cell phone.
Cudos to Brown for going against the grain!
Posted by: Scott Greider | August 29, 2007 at 10:49 AM
If Commissioner Brown isn't fiscally responsible with his own money, e.g. buying faddish gadgets, how can we expect him to spend responsibly from the county coffers?
When can we expect the county to start buying $3,700 trash bins?
Posted by: Hugh Johnson | August 29, 2007 at 03:30 PM
The Chicago Fire and Police Departments use Segways to get around. I've seen paramedics roll right into the Daley Center with all of their equipment responding to emergency calls.
Segways are also in use at the new Planet Hollywood casino's mall in Las Vegas. The information people roam around helping lost tourists find whatever they are looking for in the mall.
I don't know if Segways are for everyone -- just as most people aren't giving up their cars for mopeds or bicycles. But, the Segway is a nice tool for getting around in an urban area.
A nice benefit of riding a Segway is that I've read that in certain places, Segways are treated the same way as wheelchairs are, so it is possible to bring a Segway into a building -- something that isn't possible with other transportation devices.)
Posted by: Chris Hedges | August 29, 2007 at 04:52 PM
Ivy Tech Northeast's main campus here in Fort Wayne also has a Segway for use by the on-campus police.
Posted by: Zachary McConnell | August 29, 2007 at 05:27 PM
What he does with his own money is nobody's business. What he does with our money is everybody's business.
Technically it is illegal to ride a bicycle or moped on a sidewalk in a business district in Fort Wayne, although I am not aware of anyone who has actually been cited. A officer brazen enough to cite a county commisioner could argue that the Segway is legally a moped.
The City Council needs to formally establish that it is legal to ride a bicycle (or Segway) downtown if they want to draw more people there.
Posted by: Robert Enders | August 30, 2007 at 12:34 AM
At one point this summer, the city of South Bend was giving historical tours of the city on Segways. $40 got you two hours on a Segway and a historical tour of the city.
Dan Carmody-- You can count me in if you can get this running in Fort Wayne.
Posted by: Jeff Herr | August 30, 2007 at 10:19 AM
The Indianapolis Airport Police use them to patrol the terminals and the parking area.
Posted by: John Wallace, Bluffton, IN | August 30, 2007 at 02:22 PM