The design is based on a concept that Toyota first presented in the 1990s, when it unveiled a three-wheeled motorcycle. It has now become a reality, with a more viable design and tailored to real requirements. The Toyota C+walkT is an electric scooter for persons with bodily limitations and for hastening movement in public places. In many ways, it’s the Segway’s successor.
Toyota C+walkT comes with a 0.25 kW motor on the front wheel and allows speeds of up to 10 kilometers per hour. Mind you, the speed can be further limited when indoors or when it detects obstacles. Yes, the device is capable of detecting obstructions and issuing visual and audible warnings to the user in order to avoid accidents.
Toyota C+walkT: It is a scooter or not?
Already available for sale in Japanese stores, the Toyota C+walkT arrives for 341,000 yen, about $3,067 at the exchange rate. It will be interesting to see whether it leaves Japan and spreads to other countries. It’s a very niche vehicle that isn’t nearly as versatile as a typical electric scooter for the average person. On the other hand, its price is also well above average compared to traditional electric scooters.
There are also alternatives to purchase them in bulk to put fleets in public places like airports, events, and pedestrian areas. It is in these types of places that Segway has found its greatest success with its mobility vehicles. However, Segway also succumbed and last year announced that they were no longer going to manufacture such vehicles, the brand opted instead for electric scooters.
How it operates in public spaces is something that does not depend so much on Toyota as on the regulations of each place. It will be determined by whether it is considered a scooter or not, and whether it is permitted on the sidewalk, on the street, or in indoor areas.
Toyota is also working on a model that combines the wheelchair and a seat into one, as well as one that can attach handicapped chairs directly. These two models are still under development, although they share the front design and parts of the Toyota C+walkT.
