New to Downtown Pittsburgh: Micro Transportation
Pittsburgh has been making valiant efforts in the past several years to produce a healthier place to live. With the inventions from local people in our community, Pittsburgh is seeing a whole new way to travel. They consist of the Autopod, Healthy Ride bikes and Segway tours and they utilize the concept of micro transportation to provide a physically active and eco-friendly alternative to moving around the city. So whether you are looking for a way to get to and from the stadiums or just something to do on your day off, you will want to venture Downtown and checkout what all of the excitement is about.
The bright green Autopods traveling through the city were designed and researched by the students of Carnegie Mellon that wanted to introduce Pittsburgh to the already relevant idea of micro transportation. In Europe and other western countries, they utilize micro transportation to get around immensely. The inventors of the Autopod did their research and built an emissions-free electric pedicab that is street legal in the U. S. These pedicabs charge a flat $5.00 rate for one mile and $8.00 rate for 2 miles. You just hail over a driver, hop in and they will pedal you wherever you need to go. It makes it easier than ever to enjoy the food and libations of downtown and then travel across the bridges to get to the Northside or Southside without outrageous peak-time rates.
The new bike stations popping up throughout Pittsburgh are known as Healthy Ride Bikes. They were introduced by a company called Pittsburgh Bike Share that have made it their mission to provide better public transportation and easy-to-use ways for commuting around town. These bikes were designed with the intentions to help unfortunate people in the community be able to have the means to travel when necessary, give a physically active option for people to enjoy the outdoors and also create a sustainable eco-friendly alternative transportation for the city of Pittsburgh. These bikes are stationed in locked bike racks that are operated through a kiosk and located at different parts of the city such as Downtown, Oakland, and Lawrenceville. When accessing these bikes you are given a certain amount of time of use and then can leave them at any location that is near you, instead of having to return it to the original one. This provides a convenient and affordable one way ticket to work, school or just a cruise around town.
Pittsburgh, just like any city, is a hub for tourists. Whether they come to enjoy the sporting, musical or cultural events hosted in Pittsburgh, the city’s population increases drastically. A new adventure that has been noticed throughout Downtown are Segway tours. Segway Pittsburgh has introduced the modern transportation of Segways as an eco-friendly and totally awesome way to maneuver around the city. You can book a tour for yourself or a large group. They provide safety training and a personal guide to every tour. Check out their website for more information on discounts and tours for very large groups.
