It’s no secret that speed bumps are irritating, but it may help to know that driving over them will generate electricity — at least at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington, D.C. or a McDonalds in New Jersey.
The speed bumps, called MotionPower, are built by New Energy Technologies. According to a post on the New York Times’ Wheels blog, the action of a car driving over the bump sends the energy to a generator. A green light comes on to let you know it’s working.
No word on how much electricity the speed bumps actually generate, but it should be enough to power roadsigns or streetlights. It’ll be on the market sometime in the next couple of years, and cost about $2000. I know a street here in Portland that could power the nearby middle school if it replaced its seemingly dozens of speed bumps with these babies.
Tags: electricity, generators, motionpower, speed bumps
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