Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility

PUMA prototype

The Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility (PUMA) was an experimental electrically powered road vehicle created by Segway and adopted by General Motors as a concept vehicle representing the future of urban transportation. It operates on two wheels placed side by side, a layout that differs in placement from motorcycles which instead have their two wheels placed at the front and rear.

The PUMA design transfers the two-wheeled self-balancing characteristics of a Segway PT into a vehicle that can carry two passengers side by side at up to 35 miles per hour (56 km/h) for a distance of up to 35 miles (56 km).[1]

Segway's CEO and President, James D. Norrod claimed that the use of General Motors' sales network worldwide could allow for PUMA sales to exceed the number of Segway PT models sold to date.[2]

By 2016, Segway no longer shared information about the PUMA project at Segway.com. However, it featured the PUMA at its new Chinese flagship store, which opened in Beijing in August 2016.[3]

  1. ^ Motavalli, Jim. "G.M. Conjures Up a People-Moving Pod", The New York Times, April 6, 2009. Accessed April 7, 2009.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference MW20090307 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Segway Flagship Store in Beijing Receives Large Crowds on Opening Day". China Money Network. PRNewsiwre. 18 August 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2016.