Why the Schweeb?

Following a worldwide search for innovative ideas in a wide range of areas, Google has chosen the recumbent bike monorail concept Shweeb for a $1 million investment to fund further testing in an urban setting. While it is envisioned as a way to beat urban traffic congestion with minimal effort and zero emissions, some aren't convinced that Shweeb would have much application in American cities:

"[Geoffrey] Barnett envisions people using Shweeb -- which uses no fuel, no batteries and has no emissions -- for short trips in major urban centers where residential towers are relatively close to central business districts.

That's about the only place that Robert Lang, an expert in urban studies, could see it working out. Lang, a sociology professor and director of Brookings Mountain West at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, says Shweeb might be a viable solution, but only in the few areas with a high population density. 'It would make sense in China and New York and places like that, but you wouldn't have that much opportunity through much of urban America...There's not the imperative for congestion relief like there is in the center of London or New York."