So, I decided not to get a segway and achieve local transport through alternative means.
At one point of looking at the segway I decided that it was overpriced for what I really needed. At the time, I sort of had looked at electric-bikes.com to figure out if it was a good idea. I eventually decided that using an e-bike, even though I had to balance the bike in winter weather, was a good deal of value compared to a Segway. At $1000 or less it is easy to have an e-bike that goes about 18mph and can move a good amount of cargo with a trailer if required. I don't have a trailer yet, though.
For my uses, I only need to get to the bus stop and back. It's nice if I can get to the mall or the stores within a 5mi radius within a decent amount of time. I can get to the bus stop in less than 10 minutes with the e-bike.
I would definately recommend anyone who is afraid to break anything to hire someone to do the conversion. I used a Currie USPD bike conversion kit and it went well. I ran into one issue where I broke off one of the retaining screws off of the bracket, so be very careful to not overtighten the screws while attaching it to the wheel. I'm not too worried about it, it was one of the side screws on a plate, and I've been monitoring that area to see how it still 'grips' onto the wheel. If it gets bad, I can probally figure out something to fix it. This bracket grips onto your wheel around the spokes and allows the wheel to be driven by a chain from an electric motor. The actual design of the unit is quite ingenious and better designed than I expected. The torque-bar attachment really does allow a little bit of tolerance so the attachment of the bracket to the wheel needs to be good, but not perfect. I used a Raleigh SC7 bike to do the conversion, it fit beautifully except for the zip ties because the frame has large tubes. I had some spare zip ties, so I used them instead.
I think the performance of the USPD kit is very good considering its cost ($400 street price) and the install is easy for anyone slightly mechanically inclined. I really do notice that drivers can't understand that my bike is really moving that fast. Many drivers coming out of entrances don't seem to look twice and it can become quite scary sometimes. Wear a helmet! Use a headlight and a taillight at night! I look quite silly with a helmet and my winter gear, but its well worth it compared to getting hurt badly!
The site that really sold me on the Currie unit is here. I bought my unit from evdeals which has no real secure payment method other than paypal, but paypal works for me.
