Thursday, June 12, 2014

Transportation - Getting Around On The Cheap

When we were in Amsterdam in April we spotted these funky little cars that are manufactured only in Holland.  They are called Canta and were originally designed for disabled to travel in bike lanes.  They are 1/2 the width of a regular "smart" car and can travel very inexpensively around cities.  I thought it was a great idea and was completely fascinated by them. They are permitted to park anywhere a bike parks.   If your roads were designed to accommodate such a vehicle, would you consider a Canta?




16 comments:

  1. Cute! I would love one but I would only want to drive one in, say, Holland or other places that are used to and respectful of bicyclists (not here in Las Vegas where people would rather drive over you than wait the couple of extra seconds it takes to drive carefully and politely).

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    1. Definitely, many on motorcycles are not safe so these cars might just be smaller moving targets.

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  2. Not in a million years. I'd feel safer in a shopping cart!
    Jane x

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    1. Safety is a big issue, you would definitely have to have specific areas they could go without trying to navigate in regular traffic.

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  3. There's a car made here in the US (in Spokane , WA, I think) called the Tango. It's half as wide as a normal car, but seats 2 people, 1 in front of the other. It's cute.

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    1. I just googled the Tango - very similar! I think it is a great idea.

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  4. Awwww! aren't they cute? I love Smart cars but think these are lovely! x

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    1. They are pretty cute. We only saw one driving around though. I have no idea how much they cost though.

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  5. We have many folks in town who get around in golf carts. They're very popular here, but they're kind of expensive.

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    1. In Canada you are not allowed to drive golf carts on any public road but we do have seniors with mobility scooters. They are not fully enclosed though so they get wet when it rains. They also don't have lanes for them so they are stuck trying to navigate on the side of the road.

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  6. I would love to have something like that. However I think it would not be safe in our part of Australia.

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    1. I think they would be great in cities with bike lanes. They are electric so need to be plugged in when not in use to recharge.

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  7. So cool! For now I'll stick to my bike but there will come a day when I'll need an alternative. I wonder if we could get the Dutch to export?

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    1. I am sure they will have something in Canada like it soon enough. Smart cars seem to be shrinking all the time :)

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  8. There are quite a few smart cars here in Powell River, but they wouldn't work very well for us because we carry so much in our truck, and I wouldn't like one out in the bush. We drive such short distances because of the nature of our location that a tank of gas lasts quite a long time. - Margy

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  9. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this. I don't know how they would fair on say the toll way in Chicago but would be great in smaller cities. AWESOME.

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