Segway, the scooter whose ability to carry a standing passenger at a trot has so far failed to revolutionise human life, has gained a surprising new feature: a seat. The seat, from independent company SegSeat, is a BMX-like seat which attaches to the upright of the transporter, and can be folded flat if the user wants to stand up. Appropriately for the Segway, which costs around $4,000, the seat comes at $750.
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The seat is mounted on a braced rail, and can slide backwards and forwards, to mimic the leaning movements of standing Segway passengers, according to the Gizmag blog. By allowing passengers to sit down, the seat eliminates one of the main differences between the Segway and an electric wheelchair, and it is being marketed as an aid to partially disabled Segway users
SegSeat have also developed ramps to allow Segways to be packed into the boot of a car.
The SegSeat can be used on any Segway model, but on the Police model, which boasts an extra cross bar, Segseat warns riders not to sit while moving "because of the cross bar, to avoid injuries in case of a fall."
Launched in 2002, the Segway was last heard of in these pages in September 2003, when a global product recall revealed that the company had only managed to sell 6,000 to that date.
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