Instead, the city on Monday becomes the first large municipality to outlaw the Segway Human Transporter on its sidewalks -- more than a month before the chariot-like vehicles are made available to the public.
Safety Is A Must
That doesn't mean major cities will roundly embrace the scooters touted by their inventor, Dean Kamen, as apt to "change civilization" when he introduced them to great fanfare in December 2001.
Postal workers, police officers and meter readers across the country have tested the two-wheel device, controlled by body movements with the help of high-tech gyroscopes and tiny computers. They're on sale to the public at Amazon.com for $4,950 and will begin shipping in March.
"There were statistics submitted to us about injuries, and the Segways themselves did not have adequate safety features to alert people they might be behind them," said Tom Ammiano, a San Francisco supervisor who supported the ban.
Segway officials, however, say Segways have been tested for 100,000 hours on city streets across the nation without injury.
Tactics Questioned
Ammiano also said Segway's campaign rubbed officials the wrong way.
"Segway didn't help themselves by hiring very expensive lobbyists," he said. "I think that backfired on them, too."
New Hampshire-based Segway hired lobbying firms but made no contributions to any public officials or candidates, said Matt Dailida, the company's director of state government affairs.
A California law that takes effect on March 1 allows cities to ban the devices and Santa Cruz, Oakland and San Mateo are among those in the state that are considering such actions.
About half the states that passed laws to allow the Segway also permit cities to opt out. So far, most major municipalities are taking a wait-and-see approach, Dailida said.
In New York, no enabling legislation has been passed, though Segway expects a proposal that would allow the vehicle throughout the state except New York City, where use in the first year would be limited to government and commercial users.
Illinois passed a measure allowing Segways in towns that pass ordinances permitting them. Most, including Chicago, have not done so.
There is no current move afoot to ban Segways in congested Los Angeles, city officials said.
Critics say the Segway is a safety hazard because it weighs 69 pounds and travels up to 12.5 mph -- three times faster than typical walking speed. No state is requiring that its drivers be trained although some have set minimum age and helmet requirements.
Grassroots Battle
Pedestrian advocates are gearing up for a fight as Segway shifts its lobbying from statehouses to city halls.
"We don't want to say that it doesn't ever make sense, but in urban settings there isn't enough room for all the pedestrians," said Ellen Vanderslice, president of America WALKs, a Portland, Ore.-based pedestrian advocacy group.
Dailida says Segway can and has worked with many state and local legislators, showing that the scooters are safe alternative to driving cars. Buyers also must attend a multihour training course before the scooter is shipped to them, he added.
"We understand that this is an entirely new technology that each city needs to regulate," he said. "[But] we think the action by San Francisco was premature."
Ammiano said San Francisco said he expects other governments to follow San Francisco's lead.
"The bloom is off the rose about the Segway," he said. "I think a lot of it was ballyhoo. Now, with people looking at the practicality and cost and possible liabilities, I think they're abandoning their enthusiasm about it."
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