Give up that car and zip around town on… electric skates?
Some people just can’t or aren’t willing to walk or bike, but still may be convinced to give up their polluting personal vehicles. In an attempt to get people to forgo their cars and switch to more eco-friendly forms of transportation we’ve seen designers and entrepreneurs develop electric scooters, electric unicycles, and combination bike/scooter electric vehicles. Now a smaller electric transportation contraption is in the works, and one which is so retro that it may lead you to hark back to your childhood: the electric skate.
Currently in the process of being developed, Skataz (or the electric skate) may be coming soon to a foot near you.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIGTyCdo31U[/youtube]
There have already been a few evolutions of the electric skate product (with the newest prototype shown above), but the idea remains the same – to develop a pair of battery-powered skates that can fit around the skater’s shoes and zip him or her around town.
The current model has a 13.5 mile per hour maximum speed, with rechargeable batteries that can last up to 30 minutes (depending on the weight of the skater). The skates are small and light enough to fit into someone’s backpack, potentially making them a great way to get to and from work.
One of the down sides of these electric skates, though, is that they are powered by remote control, and the control seems to be fairly close to the ground (necessitating a lot of bending over while skating). It would also be great if the batteries had a longer life and the skates themselves were made out of recycled and recyclable materials. But maybe we will see some of those changes in the next prototype.
In the meantime, it’s great to see another non-car mode of transportation in the works out there.
: Skataz
Read more about other forms of transportation::
Trekker’s Electric Scooters Fly Around the Streets of Tel Aviv
Anywhere You Go FreeGo, Electric Scooters in Tel Aviv
Honday’s U3-X Electric Unicycle Could Outrace the Dying Segway, Sideways
EasyBike Makes it Easy to be Green
Author: Karen Chernick
Much to the disappointment of her Moroccan grandmother, Karen became a vegetarian at the age of seven because of a heartfelt respect for other forms of life. She also began her journey to understand her surroundings and her impact on the environment. She even starting an elementary school Ecology Club and an environmental newsletter in the 3rd grade. (The proceeds of the newsletter went to non-profit environmental organizations, of course.) She now studies in New York. Karen can be reached at karen (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
This is really fun- i love the idea of electric skates- i hope they are sturdy enough for outdoors like inline skates and electric scooters. Can i sell these on my website? http://www.chargedelectricscooters.com.