Urban Transport

Honda has released details of a new personal mobility device dubbed the UNI-CUB. An evolution of the U3-X unicycle EV that has been shown globally since the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show, the UNI-CUB employs the same impressive balance control technology and omni-directional wheel as its predecessor, with the biggest differences appearing to be the addition of an extra wheel, a comfier perch and optional user control via a mobile phone or tablet. Read More

Audi has announced that it will debut a new performance e-bike prototype at next week's Wörthersee Tour car show in the picturesque village of Reifnitz, Austria. Described as a high-end pedelec for sport, fun and tricks, the Audi e-bike Wörthersee features a futuristic carbon fiber frame that houses an onboard computer and a Li-ion battery pack, and carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) wheels - both designed to keep the weight down. The prototype offers five travel modes, ranging from pedal-power to electric-only, and inclusive of two "Wheelie" modes where the power is automatically controlled to assist the rider while the front wheel grabs some air. Read More

Alongside the smart fortwo electric drive coupé and convertible that appeared at the 2010 Paris Motor Show, smart also unveiled a couple of two-wheeled electric vehicle concepts, the smart ebike and smart escooter. With the ebike having already having received the production nod in 2011 and now nearing its scheduled mid-2012 release, smart has announced plans to bring its smart escooter to market with a planned 2014 launch. Read More

Our recent rundown of the coming "Transportation Appliance" marketplace has unearthed yet another another compact fold-up electric vehicle that appears set to become the smallest of the last-mile transport options. Well-known Israeli Industrial Designer Nimrod Sapir has devoted much of his life to figuring out better ways of "getting there." Nimrod designed the ingenious Tagabike we featured four years ago, but his Myway Compact EV is more compact than anything we've seen and might play a major role in transportation in the future. Read More

It’s no secret that cyclists are at a disadvantage when sharing the roads with motorized vehicles – not only do bikes offer less in the way of protection and speed than cars, but drivers often don’t even notice that they’re there. The Hornster, a bicycle featuring what is claimed to be the world’s loudest bicycle horn, was designed to bring attention to that fact. Read More

Bicycle accessory designer and manufacturer Copenhagen Parts has just announced a new range of magnetic bike lights. Called "Magnetic Bike Lights," the battery-powered LED lights may not have the novel power source of the Magnic Light we looked at in February, but they do have one nifty trick at their disposal: they automatically turn on and off when fitted and removed from a steel bicycle frame. Read More

Walk Score has ranked the 25 largest US cities by the usefulness of their transit systems. New York sits at the top of the list released by the website, which otherwise provides its users with information about the most walkable inner-city neighborhoods. San Francisco came second in the public transit rankings, with Boston, Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia rounding out the top five. Read More

Nuovo Transporto Viaggiatori (NTV), a company founded by a group of entrepreneurs headed by the president of Ferrari, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, has unleashed twenty five luxury high-speed trains on the Italian railways. This makes NTV the first private high-speed rail network carrier in the country and the first company in the world to use the next-generation Alstom AGV trains. Although called “Italo”, the “Ferrari train” label seems to describe the racing red beasts somewhat more accurately. The thrill of traveling at high speeds in a Ferrari is soon to be available to anyone who can afford a train ticket! Read More

Los Angeles industrial designer Nathan Wills is an avid cyclist, but he has a gripe about most traditional bike lights – in order for them to really be noticed at night, they have to be seen head-on. He decided to create head and tail lights that were highly visible from the sides as well. While he was at it, he also positioned them higher than regular bike-mounted lights, and made them much more difficult to steal. The result is his prototype Torch T1 – a bike helmet with built-in luminous panels. Read More