"The Segway" is a Vehicle, [Confused?]
And, honestly, we can't wait for Segway Side Cars to come out....!
Ever Seen a Stop Test? Me Neither
Retrieved by Pat Darnell and the Herd
We never have seen lots of things. That is why we depend on internet; our bridge to see all sorts of results about our perceptions of a constantly spinning out of control world.
"Electric Personal Assistive Mobility Devices" (EPAMDs)
SUMMARY: What has attracted less public attention is the number of hazards that pedestrian-oriented traffic regulations and pedestrian-oriented facilities pose for EPAMD drivers when these operators travel at much higher than pedestrian speeds with limited, vehicular maneuverability including longer stopping distances and wider turn radii.Figure: Nine video frames of one trial of the 12.5 mph stopping distance experiment. The approach and visual signal of raising hands are shown in the first four images. The Segway operator has begun braking by the fifth image and reaches maximum distance at the seventh. Note that the spacing between parking stall markings is nine feet.
The average abrupt-stopping distance of the experiments from 12.5 mph was 18.6 feet. A 9.3 Megabyte MPEG-1 video file showing several of the braking experiment trials is available for download at http://humantransport.org/bicycledriving/library/segway/Segway.mpg.
Stopping distance for various speeds may also be estimated from the physical laws of motion and the top speed allowed for EPAMDs in the law. The simple equation for braking distance d to arrive at a stop, assuming a constant rate of deceleration, is:
d = 0.5(v2)/a
"The Segway's two batteries recharge in four to five hours, and a charge will take you 10 to 15 miles with a top speed of about 18 miles per hour", Marsha Walton, CNN Sci-Tech, January 16, 2002.
Figure: shows an EPAMD and operator leaning backward at an angle for a deceleration rate of 0.3 Gs. In order to attain a deceleration rate greater than 0.6 Gs, the maximum theoretical braking ability of the bicycle, the EPAMD and operator must attain a more extreme center-of-mass angle as shown in Figure 3D. Many Segway operators can achieve extreme lean angles by bending their waist and knees and dropping their body weight backward and down with respect to the platform.
So, one might ask, What Happened Here?
In The Traffic Safety Toolbox published by the ITE [8] we read:
"Sidewalk bike paths. From the late 1970s through the mid-1980s a number of communities assigned some sidewalks or built new paths for bicyclists parallel to roadways. Several states even passed laws forcing bicyclists to use such facilities if they existed.
Bicycle/car crashes increased dramatically in some corridors, especially at driveways, intersections, on bridges, and other locations. Sidewalks or paths parallel to a roadway force bicyclists to ride against traffic half of the time.
In either direction, motorists are often surprised by the presence of cyclists [on sidewalks], since [motorists] are neither conditioned nor capable of searching these locations for traffic moving at 8-15 mph. Many
pedestrians were also hurt, or complained that it was no longer comfortable to walk.
Also, many motorists became less considerate of bicyclists who continued to use the often safer roadway sections.…in no case should a bicyclist be forced to use the sidewalk pathway.
Never assign a sidewalk or parallel path as a bikeway or put signs on them, since many motorists who see these signs will assume that those bicyclists riding on the roadway section are not permitted to be there."
In The Traffic Safety Toolbox published by the ITE [8] we read:
"Sidewalk bike paths. From the late 1970s through the mid-1980s a number of communities assigned some sidewalks or built new paths for bicyclists parallel to roadways. Several states even passed laws forcing bicyclists to use such facilities if they existed.
Bicycle/car crashes increased dramatically in some corridors, especially at driveways, intersections, on bridges, and other locations. Sidewalks or paths parallel to a roadway force bicyclists to ride against traffic half of the time.
In either direction, motorists are often surprised by the presence of cyclists [on sidewalks], since [motorists] are neither conditioned nor capable of searching these locations for traffic moving at 8-15 mph. Many
pedestrians were also hurt, or complained that it was no longer comfortable to walk.Also, many motorists became less considerate of bicyclists who continued to use the often safer roadway sections.…in no case should a bicyclist be forced to use the sidewalk pathway.
Never assign a sidewalk or parallel path as a bikeway or put signs on them, since many motorists who see these signs will assume that those bicyclists riding on the roadway section are not permitted to be there."
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