Much ado about one little "Human Transporter"? (On First Reading).

Jay Leno has tried it. So has Florida Governor Jeb Bush, as well as hundreds of state legislators. Staff members from the U.S. Postal and National Parks services have used it to perform day-to-day duties. It's the latest in transportation technology. But its future may depend on state legislators.

This new, two-wheeled, scooter-like invention is called the Segway Human Transporter and can travel at speeds up to 12 miles per hour. The transporters use technology to imitate human balance and movement.

When the rider, who is standing on the platform between the wheels, leans forward, the Segway moves forward on its own, negating the need for a push from a foot required by scooters.

Segways are designed to travel along sidewalks and other pedestrian areas. And therein lies the problem: To protect the safety of pedestrians, many state and local laws ban the use of motorized vehicles and scooters on sidewalks. But the Segway is not, in the strictest definition, a scooter.

Segway, LLC-the company behind the human transporter-anticipated this problem and has been working hard to ensure that the device is classified in a way that will limit regulation and make changing state laws easier.

Last fall, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an arm of the U.S. Department of Transportation, announced that it considered the Segway to be more like a motorized wheelchair and therefore not subject to agency regulations.

Around the same time, the Consumer Product Safety Commission decided to define the invention as a consumer product," which means the device will be regulated by the commission.

Even though the $3,000 (apiece) Segways won't be available for purchase until late 2002, Segway LLC orchestrated quite a successful lobbying campaign during the 2002 state legislative sessions. The campaign pushed for state laws permitting use on sidewalks. The timing was odd since in recent years many state and local governments have been pushing for stricter motorized scooter laws in light of increased scooter-related injuries.

But by the end of March, 14 states had enacted laws permitting the use of Segways on sidewalks. Almost every state has considered similar legislation. Most of these bills define Segways as an "electric personal assistive mobility devices" and provide an exemption from existing laws.