Segway Owner Dies When Two-Wheeler Goes Off Cliff: Would You Rent One to Tour a City?

Tourist information staff on Segways in Rome. Sue Frause photos.

How ironic that the owner of Segway died after his two-wheeler went off a cliff and into a river in northern England.

I recently spotted a couple of middle-aged tourists tooling around Rome on Segways. Actually, my hubby and I thought they looked pretty silly, and it didn't seem to be in sync with The Eternal City.

But ever since Segways were introduced in 2002, they've been popping up in various cities around the world. In the US, City Segway Tours ("Proud to be the first guided tour using Segways in the world") has operations in Atlanta, Berlin, Budapest, Chicago, Munich, Paris, San Francisco, Vienna and Washington, DC.

And Italy Segway Tours ("The first and the original in Italy since 2005") offers trips in Florence, Pisa, Milan and Rome.

Sorry, Segway, but I'm not smitten with your human transporters. I can't think of anything more harrowing than trying to navigate Rome's narrow, cobblestone streets while aboard the so-called Ultimate Green Machine. All the while trying to take photos, check out the map or stop for a morning cappuccino along the way.

I'll stick with my own two feet.

My feet worked just fine at Rome's Colisseum.