Nov. 4, 2004 – Students at Trident Technical College’s nearly 82-acre Main Campus have seen something new recently, public safety officers zooming past them on a Segway human transporter. As the only college in the Southeast testing the $4,000 self-balancing scooter, TTC is exploring the viability of the transporter in a college campus environment for the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center-Southeast (NLECTC-SE).

The transporter, which can reach a maximum speed of 14 mph, provides public safety officers the means to quickly travel from one side of the campus to the other. Rather than drive on roadways that circle the campus, officers can use the agile transporter to quickly navigate on the sidewalks between buildings and increase their response times.

“The Segway is a very good tool,” said TTC Public Safety Officer John Simpson Jr., who has been using the device for several weeks. “There are lots of applications on campus – we can quickly patrol parking lots and the inside of large buildings.”

The Segway transporter is on loan from NLECTC-SE for 60 days while TTC’s public safety officers test its functionality across campus and within the confines of various buildings. The testing is particularly useful in Phase II of the Complex for Industrial and Economic Development slated to open in summer 2005 on the College’s Main Campus. The 144,000-square-foot space, a former warehouse, is being renovated into labs, classrooms and specialized training areas that will become centers for Information Technology and Culinary and Hospitality Training, as well as an Electro-Mechanical Skills Laboratory.

“When you use the Segway indoors, such as in Phase II or at the Berkeley Campus,” said TTC Public Safety Officer Frederick Hart, “you can quickly cut through hallways and go straight to the classroom where you are needed.”

Other benefits of the Segway include the ease with which officers can get on and off the device, and the fact that it doesn’t need a parking space upon arrival at a building. Once inside, the transporter requires a mere two and a half feet of space to speed down corridors or make 360 degree turns.

“We’re learning that response times for officers on foot can be much faster – especially while patrolling inside large buildings,” said TTC Director of Public Safety Amy Knight. “The NLECTC-SE has provided us with a fantastic opportunity and we’re honored that TTC was chosen to test the Segway.”

TTC public safety officers will continue testing the transporters at all three campuses – Palmer (downtown), Main (North Charleston) and Berkeley (Moncks Corner). The results of the study will be provided to NLECTC-SE.