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February 19, 2003

States debate rules for Segway scooters

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) -- Make way for Segway.

The much-hyped self-balancing electric scooter, still a relative rarity on the West Coast, is headed our way: the manufacturer will start delivering the $5,000 devices next month to those who take the company's training class.

And state legislators are joining the national debate about how to regulate the gyroscope-balanced vehicle, brainchild of New Hampshire inventor Dean Kamen.

A bill introduced Monday in the Oregon Senate seeks to define the Segway in the state transportation code and permit it on sidewalks, bike paths and the sides of streets posted 25 mph or less. Thanks to aggressive lobbying by Segway, 33 states have passed similar laws.

Segway says its two-wheeled marvel, at 83 pounds and two feet wide, can cruise comfortably along bike paths or stroll casually down city sidewalks. It's safer among pedestrians than in the street with cars, trucks and buses, said Matt Dailida, director of government affairs for Segway LLC of Manchester, N.H.

But the thought of an electric vehicle that can go as fast as 12.5 mph on the sidewalk is a tad troubling for Diane Bishop, bicycle and alternative modes coordinator for the city of Eugene.




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