Image by Geoff Marshall/TheDigitelImage by t3motion.jpg

Subhead: This might be the T3 you're looking for.

I visited Chicago earlier this year, and got chatting to a police officer in the city who was patroling the streets in a Segway electric vehicle.

"It'll never catch on in Charleston" I thought, only to fly back a few days later and discover that Charleston City Police had bought two of their own electric patrol vehicles -- the T3 Motion.

So we decided that it was time go and talk to the Police and see if these things worked, and if they were as much fun to ride as they looked.

"They're probably more fun that I should admit to having on duty," says Sgt. Emanuele. "But it does allow us to respond to calls more quickly, we'll often get to a scene quicker than some of our collegues in their patrol car, because we can motor through places that a car can't go."

At the moment they're just used by "Team 2" in the downtown historic district. And some thirty officers have been trained up to use them, by undergoing a breif training course, as they're very intuitive to use.

A T3 until costs around $12,000 new, and after a four-hour cycle charge, can drive for about 25 miles, which is enough to cover a ten hour shift without any problems.

Play the video to see one in action!

We chatted more extensively about the police using the T3 Motion a couple of months ago.