Thesis Proposal

I Hate the Segway but I Also Hate Seeing One Person in a Two Tonne Car

In this essay I am concerned with the plethora of means that we humans have used to move ourselves from one place to another. In many cultures the esteemed members such as royalty were carried from place to place by servants, where as the lower caste would always walk. This basic culture of wealthy excess has continued, but the development of the middle- and upper-middle class as a core consumer has prompted new concerns.
It has been said that the age of the car is equally the age of the absence of the horse. Technologies evolve and what has been, steps aside for the new. Since the basic design of the car was put into production there have been few fundamental changes in direction.
This is in stark contrast to how cities and the urban environment in general have changed. There has always been a steady migration of people from the country to the city but it is only recently that city design has considered the ebb and flow of a cities inhabitants.
The old adage “Horses for Courses” is quite apt for my thesis. Since the advent of the car there has been few fundamental shifts is the scale and purpose of the vehicle. Cities simply have limited street space and the environment can’t burden any more pollution. Planes are great for long distance, cars superb for medium distance. It is the short distances that we struggle with. Dean Kamen’s Segway is a well know vehicle that claims to fill the gap between the car and walking.
In this essay I will broadly investigate developments in personnel mobility and the design and social consequences.