IT's sometime correspondent Andy Isaacson has sent us his latest observations on transportation, though in slightly less exalted fashion than his previous post:
As if carrying a map and gawking didn't already label you an out-of-towner, more offbeat ways to sightsee can seal your tourist identity. In spite of staring locals, these alfresco and eco-friendly alternatives to bus tours, rental cars, and public transportation can almost pass as cool, even if a tad unusual.
In San Francisco, you can rent small electric vehicles equipped with GPS-powered audio tours to cruise independently around famous landmarks, such as Coit Tower, the Golden Gate Bridge, and crooked Lombard Street. Brightly colored, over a foot narrower than conventional cars, and resembling souped-up golf carts, the vehicles are street- and hill-friendly, reaching a top speed of 25 mph. Choose from three different routes that begin and end at Fisherman's Wharf. Along the way, prerecorded directional instructions voiced by locals explain historic sites and reenact scenes from the city's history.
Stately Savannah, America's first planned city (which didn't plan for automobiles), offers sightseeing by pedicab, a human-powered, three-wheeled vehicle with pedals and a passenger cab, an efficient and pleasant way to take in the elegant architecture and verdant public squares. Savannah Pedicab gives half-hour, hour, or full-day chauffeured rides around the downtown historic district.
And in Chicago (as well as six other cities), one company offers the chance to see the city aboard that most Jetson-like of inventions, the Segway Human Transporter. Its popular, three-hour tour begins with a prevent-a-crash course in riding the upright, two-wheeled, self-balancing 'personal transportation device.' Starting from the Adler Planetarium, staff-guided groups cruise past the Shedd Aquarium and along Lake Shore Drive to Grant Park, then past Soldier Field stadium and the downtown skyline.
An added bonus to transport by Segway? Thanks to their recent adoption as airports' security vehicles of choice, they're sure to give riders an added air of authority in the near future.
And
one more thing. IT spent a long weekend in Savannah earlier this year,
where we more than once turned green with envy at the sight of Coastal Scooters customers beetling around in another, adorable, alternative means of transportation.
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