Voltitude electric bike
Precision engineered in Switzerland with an Ikea-like coolness, this new electric bike folds away in one second thanks to clever clock-work innardsOnce or twice a year the term 'urban mobility solution' gets bandied about. Everyone freaks out and begins seeing the future and then nothing happens.
Well, this time the future is here! Behold the Voltitude folding electric bike, a Swiss design that claims to have the "world's easiest and quickest folding system". Take that Tron lightcycle.
The compact design is the culmination of more than four years of development according to Voltitude, not to mention 13 international patents, and it's claim to fame is it's one second fold/unfold time.
In less time than it takes to inhale a deep breath, the Swiss scooter can be unfolded from its easily portable form into a fully-fledged scooter. And you could cause a lot of mayhem on the expertly engineered and finished electric scooter, which has enough battery power to cover 30 kilometres.
It can be ordered with three, five or eight speed gearboxes.
Voltitude says that the electric bike is "so beautifully designed that you will want to keep it near you at all times," and as most intelligent people would agree, that statement is hard to argue with. The bright red fuselage and smoothly finished aluminium components would match the garb of all types, from trendy bohemian hipsters and fashion conscious gadget lovers to high powered lawyers and stock brokers.
The precision made device featuers a 250W motor which gives it a top speed of around 20km/h and this classifies it as a bicycle in Europe, so no license or helmet is needed in some EU countries. And it can also use bicycle lanes. It weighs 22kg all up and folds into a compact and easily stowable 60cm x 85cm package.
The handlebar controls look fairly simple and the yoke has a neat little digital readout with battery charge remaining and road speed. The face of it also boasts two compact LED light clusters to light the way in dark times.
Energised by a 36V lithium polymer battery system, charging takes around four hours. It has uber-chic clear plastic pedals that function as human-powered backup should the batteries run out of juice. Deceleration is taken care of by compact hydraulic disc brakes and there's also an led brake light on the rear.
At present Voltitude only sells the electric bike in Switzerland to selected clientele, which means its incredibly expensive, but the company plans to begin selling the bike to the public from September 2011, at which point it will disclose pricing. Voltitude is taking pre-orders though, and worldwide shipping will be free, so it's available globally.
Arguably one of the sexiest urban mobility solutions, more information on the Swiss-engineered and built device can be found at the Voltitude.com website.
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