This strange-looking bubble, which I spotted parked in Basel, Switzerland, looked at first like a version of those enclosed recumbent bicycles that pop up here and there, but it turned out to be more: A lot more.
It’s called ‘Evovelo,’ and yes, it’s a bicycle, or really tricycle. But not really recumbent; you sit up in it like you would in a car, a very small car, like the old BMW Isetta, although this one you enter from the side, not the front.
Unlike a bicycle, it’s enclosed against rain and other unpleasant weather. It even has a passenger seat. You steer it with a joystick device that’s sort of tiller, sort of handlebar. It also controls the motor functions. Yes, it has a motor!
But the big surprise of Evovelo is hinted at in its description as a ‘bio-hybrid’ device. Power is supplied by you (bio, get it?) and the sun. Evovelo’s solar panels feed a battery, which can also be recharged from the power grid. Just as in a pedal-assist bicycle, the battery is your backup (and possible savior!).
In Europe, it’s placed in a class that makes it legal on both roadways and bike lanes, and without a license. Goes for about €5,000.
