It’s a good idea, but it would be hard to steer.

I’m not sure that the design in your sketch would work well, but I think that the next innovation in cycling will come from a tinkerer who may not have a background in mechanical engineering. After all, the Sideways Bike was invented by a Software Engineer.

Have you thought about roller blades as something that’s fun and doesn’t take up too much space on the sidewalk? I got a set of roller blades a few months ago, and have had fun riding them in cities. It’s pretty easy to ride them in Tempe. When I rode them in Santa Monica and Venice Beach I wished I was better at braking, because I had to walk down a lot of hills, but they worked well there, too.

While looking online for roller blades, I saw a different design that I really want to try. Instead of four wheels per shoe, it has two, and they’re much bigger. It’s like a bike on each foot. A friend of mine who is an avid roller blader doesn’t like the idea because it deviates too much from regular roller blades, but that is precisely why I am interested in them. I think they probably work better on rough roads. What I’m not sure of is whether they’re easier or harder on the knees and ankles. I really can’t tell just by looking at them.

Ben! Ooh! Those LandRoller’s look sweet. Do tell me if you try them out (apparently they’re out of stock everywhere).

I have thought about roller blades for city human-powered transportation but they are:
- harder to use than a bike. As you mentioned, they’re particularly hard to brake.
- slower and, most importantly, much more tiring than a bike.
- difficult to wear on and off. This is crucial.

I don’t get the drawing. That thing on the top, is that a steer or a seat?
Because if it’s a steer then you’ve got no seat, and if you have to pedal while standing it would be way too hard.
If its a seat, well, the it’s kinda like a monocycle with 2 wheels, isn’t it? But then, how would you steer? I don’t think it could use the same system as the monocycle, in which you just move your body to the sides.

Now, about the rollerblades, I was just thinking of taking mine to SF next month when I go visiting hah Mom and Dad laughed about me, but I’m seriously considering it. It all depends of how much luggage I’m allowed, they are pretty heavy.

chemito: Added some new drawings to make things clearer. The thing on top is a steer. There’s no seat. Pedaling while standing is not hard at all. In fact, most bikers enjoy standing up from the seat since it’s much easier to pedal this way and besides bike seats are a most uncomfortable thing. The steering would be the handlebars, which would rotate and control the wheels. I really think this could be an interesting alternative to a standard bike!

About the rollerblades, you definitely should, there are so many places here great for them!

Then it would be like a human-powered segway, wouldn’t it?

Yo insisto que pedalear parado no es una buena opcion. Digo, en una bici normal se puedo pero porque vas como agachado, pero en la tuya irias parado totalmente. Naaah, yo no la usaria si tuviera que ir parada.

This design has serious issues when it comes to forwards/backwards stability. Something you don’t need to worry about with a bike.

On the other hand, bikes have left/right stability issues, which you largely don’t have here (in a similar way you largely, but not entirely, don’t have forwards/backwards stability issues on a bike).

In reality, who knows if this thing’s going to work until it’s actually built? Tinkering beats theorizing. The Trikke ’s legend is that they only discovered that shifting sideways moved the thing by chance experimenting with the actual prototype.