17 Really Cool Alternatives To A Car

Get ready to stoke your imagination…especially if you do not favor the morning or afternoon commute. There are plenty of awesome alternatives to driving, and they do not include taking mass transit or carpooling. Some you need a bankroll to buy, like the first gadget. It’s insanely fun though, despite the high price tag. There’s also one on this list that’s free. Sit back and imagine riding these… 1. Surfwheel Close your eyes and you’ll think you’re in a pipeline. Open them and watch out for that bus!!! Surfwheel gives you the sensation that you really are surfing or snowboarding. Its large wheel gives a smoooooth ride on city streets. Plus, you get an insane amount of freedom from this surprisingly rigid-looking board and wheel—the only moving part. To turn, you lean on the edge as you move, letting you carve the concrete around shoppers, buses and slow-moving bikes. Like surfing. (Except for the shoppers and buses.) You can get it up to 11 mph (18 km/h) and go about two miles on the battery. Whether you’re going to your awesome job, a party or to hang out with a friend, Surfwheel makes the commute more fun than the destination. Click here for more information or to order. 2. The Boosted Board This is currently Casey Neistat’s preferred mode of transit. It’s fast. It’s fun. It makes you look really cool. And you don’t have to exert any effort to move 24 mph (38 km/h). Well, you have to slide your thumb on the handheld control pad. Forward and reverse. This flexible bamboo longboard is a phenomenal and fun way to get around. And if you want to do a cost comparison against using your car or taking a bus or cab, well, there really is no comparison. This bad boy costs a pretty penny and it will take you awhile to earn back your money. Like decades. Prices start at $999. However, there are less-expensive, equally fun alternatives. Read on… Click here for more information or to order. 3. E-Go Cruiser Electric Skateboard If you don’t want to drop a grand on a Boosted Board, but you are so done with driving your car back and forth to work in stop-and-go traffic. Or riding a smelly, stop-and-go bus. Or taking a smelly stop-and-go taxi. And you want a longboard, E-Go Cruiser can hook you up for a couple hundred less. We’re not only talking fun, we’re talking investing in an economical commute if gas hits $3.50 again. And why shouldn’t it with things the way they are? But don’t get me started. On your E-Go, you can jet around the taxis and buses and cars at a constant 13 mph (20.9 km/h) and look hot without even breaking a sweat. Click here for more information or to order. 4. Razor E300 Electric Scooter Razor makes rush hour (or lunch hour) fun as it cuts your commute and adds excitement to your shuttle to work. It can also get you to class in style and not out of breath as you zig and zag around other diligent but envious students forced to use their feet. The motor propels you at a constant 15 mph (24 km/h) which puts it out of reach of the squeamish. It will still zip you around if you’re a little overweight (235 lbs or 106 kg, maybe even more) and as long as you take care of the battery, the Razor will take care of you whether on pavement or gravel, hills or planes. And of course, waxed linoleum. Click here for more information or to order. 5. Skatecycle Hubless Skateboard Stick your feet in the hubless Os and go. If you get over the learning curve, that is. It’s pretty steep, and it might take you a solid 20 minutes…for several days…of practicing. This is a super-cool, head-turning mode to get around. If you’re navigating the dense and vibrant sidewalks of Manhattan, this might be tricky. Lots of obstacles, and you need to twist to propel. If the path is a little clearer, smooth sailing, sailor. Enjoy the foot control of snowboarding, the balanced turning of skateboarding, and the nimble, undulating movements of caster boarding Click here for more information or to order. 6. Orbitwheel These are a cross between a skateboard and inline skates. It’s like the Hubless Skateboard, but without the linking rod. You’re going to move all right, but you’re going to have to work to achieve and maintain your momentum. (Read: exercise!) Your legs are the batteries, and these two large, independent wheels will laugh at you until you get the hang of them. The walls and your furniture will be your friends for awhile. Once you’re balanced and moving (let’s say…after a week), you will enjoy the ride as the wheels give you the freedom to turn and accelerate in unusual ways. Toss ‘em in your backpack or briefcase when not in use. Click here for more information or to order. 7. Rollerblades If you want to get around and get some exercise, these throwbacks are a favorite and are still vogue. Made popular in the 90’s, Rollerblades take some practice but once you get the hang, which shouldn’t take too long, you can slip and slide around campus or anywhere. They’re cheaper than a bike and you burn more calories blading versus biking. You can get a Rollerblade Spark 80ALU, linked below. Its frame is aluminum, a definite upgrade from plastic, but the wheels are hit or miss. You might need to pick up better ones. However, some stay happy with the stock rollers. The skates are strong enough to carry 285 pounds / 129 kg. Click here for more information or to order. 8. Vanilla Speed Inline Skates These are ideal for lazy mornings when you just don’t want to get out of bed. Snooze and snooze again. The aroma of wafting coffee causes only eye fluttering. But then you realize something: It’s not the weekend. You’re late!!! If you already slapped your credit card with the $199 purchase price for these super-fast dogs, then you get to slip them on and zoom off. And zoom you will in the carbon fiber boot with aluminum frame and 85A indoor/outdoor wheels that move fast and can handle almost anything. They may even make your angry boss smile. Click here for more information or to order. 9. Cyclamatic Electric Foldaway Bike Leave the car in the driveway. (Or at the dealership for that matter.) Your ride has arrived. This is such a great way to get around. For about three times the price, you can have a higher-end electric bike (or a decent used car), or you can save $1200 and jump on the Cyclamatic Foldaway. It’s tag, $559 on Amazon. You will cruise at 13 mph (20.9 km/h) and the lithium-ion battery will carry you for 30 miles/48 km. (How far away do you work?) It folds nicely if you’re carrying it on a bus or a train, but it is on the heavy side. Lifting it onto a bus might be a little work, although do-able, and peddling inclines can be a bit more tedious. What you do is flip the switch to pedal-assist and it will help you up hills. Click here for more information or to order. 10. Feet ‘Nuff said? Actually, just take these points before you click “Next.” Paul T. Williams, Ph.D. and staff scientist at Berkeley’s National Laboratory, says walking is “a wonder drug, except that you don’t need a prescription and you don’t have to pay for it.” Other doctors and Harvard Medical School publications credit walking for its proven ability to strengthen memory, protect against heart disease, improve mood, reduce anxiety, reduce the pain of knee arthritis, lower the progression of Alzheimer’s in older folks, relieve depression, control weight, lower blood pressure and more. Plan to hit the pavement, Jack. Or Jill. Now you can hit “Next.” Click here to order the pair of Asics in the picture. 11. Unicycle If you’re married, your spouse will think you’re nuts for riding it. (But he or she will secretly envy you and try it out while you’re sleeping.) If you’re single, prepare to meet lots of people. This is a conversation starter, for sure. Easy to assemble. Fun to ride. And parking is no prob. If you’re new to a unicycle, it takes some practice (obviously, right?) but not a crazy time investment. Find an open area and something to lean on. Once you get up, just practice getting the feel and perfecting your balance. Once you do, you will join an elite and proud club. And inspire lots of happy observers. Click here to get your own unicycle. 12. Kayak Few among us have the opportunity to kayak to work. But for those who do, this is one heckuva way to get from home to the office and back. Two men brave the busy Hudson River to paddle the one mile from Hoboken, NJ to Manhattan. One man travels the canals of Birmingham. There are others. Are you one of the others? Do you want to be one of the others? The Sun Dolphin Aruba is a recreational kayak that’s good for a commute if it will not involve massive rapids or huge waves. It is built for comfort and lists a weight limit of 250 lbs (113 kg). If you’re going to travel a busy motorboat waterway, get orange. You’ll be more visible. Click below. Your orange kayak is waiting here. 13. Lunicycle The product of a Kickstarter campaign and the brainchild of inventor, Shane Chen, this is the unicycle for the klutzy. It’s also good for those who don’t want to spend the time learning to ride a unicycle. The center of gravity is low to help those equilibrium-challenged among us. It’s propelled by pedal power (i.e. your legs) so you get a nice workout when you travel via Luni. The 20-inch, oval wheel helps you cover more ground faster, but you do have to work to make the single wheel turn. (Don’t worry. It’s fun work.) Click here for more information or to order. 14. Airwheel S5 Electric Bike Scooter The ‘Lean Steer Technology’ lets you maneuver with absolute ease, making the scooter an extension of your body. It can get you going a little over 11 mph (18 km/h) which secures you with the feeling of safety while at the same time zipping you past pedestrians. Even if you’re up to 286 lbs (130 Kg). It’s fun. It’s smooth. And it gets you there in style, wherever “there” is. It’s got headlight and indicator lights for your safe nighttime scootering pleasure. The handlebars fold for easy storage or parking, and it’s got a Bluetooth interface. Riding this electric scooter will not, however, build your muscles like the man in this picture. You’ve gotta work on that before you step on board. Click here for more information or to order. 15. The Skateboard The ol’ favorite made famous by Marty McFly. Remember him from Back to the Future and his car-hanging antics? Boarding took off after this flick and has not looked back. Sure there are motorized and electric skateboards, but nothing beats the foot pumping, wheel rumbling ride of a skateboard, the granddaddy of most of items on this list. So important is this mode of transport in the history of transportation, it gets a “The” in front of it in the title. Back to the basics. Get your board here. 16. Bike And you thought the bike would be left off the list. Pshaw. Did you know, on average, bicycle commuters lose 13 pounds in their first year of cycling alone? You can save your monthly gym membership payment by riding to work. A poll showed that half of Americans commute five or fewer miles to work. If you’re in this range, why not get yourself a nice set of two wheels and start pedaling? Not only do you save the membership fee, you save on gas or bus fare. And you’ll be able to zoom in and out of stopped traffic. Get yourself a nice mountain bike or road bike and get started. Click here to order your bike. 17. Hoverboard If you like to move at jogging speed without moving your legs, and you don’t mind dropping around $400, have we got the gadget for you. The Hoverboard goes by different names but they’re all made in the same place. It might take a little getting used to, say around 15 minutes, and you might make a fool of yourself when it hits 7mph or 27 km/h (top speed) and your brain says faster but the wheels don’t listen, and you tumble forward…or backward. Awesome. Especially if you’re in business attire. More fun than a cab ride, you’ll make your money back opting to hover instead of 50 fares. It can handle small bumps and crack, but definitely avoid potholes. Did we need to say that? Click here for more information or to order