BiCar: Swiss sci-fi EV to share getting serious
BiCar, an electric vehicle developed by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) is about to hit the road. A spin-off, the Share your BICAR AG, has been working on the three-wheeled mini electric car and found powerful investors for the planned series production.
Start with Urs Horat, an independent investor and founder of the Compona AG. He believes that the “BiCar is exactly the right solution for short distances, and the fun factor is also extremely high”. He was joined in his enthusiasm by two development projects of the European Union and commercial partners helping to bring the small electric vehicle closer to market. In fact, they aim to release the first BiCars as early as next year.
The BiCar is a curious EV. First presented in 2015 reportedly, it sits between a bicycle or scooter size-wise and drives like a car, albeit slowly at 30 kph. On top it is self-balancing on three wheels and compact enough to fit eight of them in one parking lot. It is entirely covered so that drivers are protected from the elements, comes rain or shine.
Its use case is no less curious as the BiCar is designed for sharing. At the moment, there are six engineers and an industrial designer working with the ZHAW School of Engineering to further develop the little urbanite. They aim to make the BiCar ready to go through EU legislation.
Moreover, the spin-off founders Adrian Burri and Hans-Jörg Dennig have reached out to cities in Europe and Switzerland looking for a sustainable sharing solution. However, such a roll-out requires capital and so Share your BICAR is looking for other partners and investors to foster their mini electric vehicle. Their next target is to offer an initial run of BiCar sharing vehicles in cities in Europe and Switzerland.
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