The Paralympics might not get the same levels of interest as themain Olympic event itself, but the organizational challenges faced for the Paris 2024 event are much the same. One of the biggest issues is getting athletes and support staff from A to B.Toyotacame up with a raft of mobility solutions to help.
I just returned from the event, and, while I was there, I got to see and try what the company came up with. It’s an impressive fleet, ranging from four-wheeled people movers down to single-person mobility aids. Toyota is one of the mainOlympic partners, so it has a vested interest anyway. However, the automaker had been working on a lot of these ideas long before the opening of the games.
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Toyota mobility solutions
Some big, some small, but all of them essential
TheJapanese carmakeris providing no less than 700 personal last-mile mobility products during the course of the Olympics, making them available not only to the athletes but also to volunteers and organizers. Someone who was similarly impressed was Billy Monger, the racing driver and TV presenter, who paid a visit to Toyota’s Mobility Park. The pop-up test area sits in a vacant space under a Paris Metro line and offers visitors the chance to try out the company’s vehicles.
Like me, he got to try the Yosh-E, which is an electric puller for manual wheelchairs. It’s a collaboration between Toyota and the Austrian company Klaxon. The compact power unit clips onto the front of a manual wheelchair, turning it into a battery-electric vehicle. The add-on features a top speed of 5mph, offers up to 25km of range and can befully recharged in three-and-a-half hours.
The Japanese carmaker is providing no less than 700 personal last-mile mobility products during the course of the Olympics, making them available not only to the athletes but also to volunteers and organizers.
Then there’s the C+ Walk, which is a funky little battery-powered three-wheeler that people can either stand or sit on to use. It’ll do up to 6mph and has a frugal 8.6-mile maximum range. Again, it’s relatively quick to charge, going from empty to full in about 2.5 hours.
“This is really clever and really intuitive, as you lean your upper body forwards to make the Genny move, back to brake and lean left or right to steer. Once you’ve got the hang of it, it’s really fun and agile,” Monger told me, following his test drive.
Another brilliant idea from Toyota, which seems so obvious when you think about it, is the Eppur. This is a very clever pioneering braking system for manual wheelchairs. Users simply pull on the outer rim of their wheelchair and there’s a braking mechanism built into the hub, allowing much more powerful and versatile stopping than ever before.
It gets even better. The Toyota Juu is an electric wheelchair prototype that can autonomously climb stairs, even those that are up to half a foot deep. Juu can do this even with the user sitting in place and could enable wheelchairs to gain access to all sorts of previously inaccessible places.
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People moving power
Different solutions for different problems
Of course, it’s all about the numbers at the Olympics and with lots of people to move, Toyota also had its beefier machines on hand to help with the logistics operation. The Accessible People Mover or APM is a little four-wheeled creation that offers quick and easy access for people with limited mobility. It’s been so useful that 250 have been on hand for the Olympic Games. With a maximum speed of 11.8mph, it’s not fast, but it’s super helpful and can keep going for up to 62 miles before needing a recharge.
I had a blast trying out these and other Toyota mobility solutions. They’re good fun to use, but, more importantly, they’re lending a helping hand and making life easier for folks. That, just like the Olympic and Paralympic Games, is worth celebrating.
