E-powered skateboards roll in isles

Alternative transportation is on a roll in Hono­lulu, and that now includes the Yuneec E-GO Cruiser.

Matthew Kievlan, co-owner of Humbolt Surf at 1299 Kapiolani Blvd., holds the exclusive rights to sell the Chinese-made electric skateboard in Hawaii.

It’s available at the shop for $700.

The 13.9-pound skateboard is operated by a wireless, hand-held controller and can reach speeds of up to 12.5 miles per hour. On a single charge of its lithium-ion battery, it can travel up to 18 miles.

"There’s a need in Hawaii for alternative transportation," Kievlan said. "We have congestion and parking issues, and oftentimes it takes longer to get places in a car than it does a bicycle or a skateboard."

Yuneec International Co. Ltd., which specializes in high-tech propulsion systems for aircraft, manufactures the E-GO Cruiser, referring to it as a "personal electric transporter."

A growing number of electric skateboards are on the market, with prices ranging from a couple hundred dollars to $1,000 and up, though few Hono­lulu retailers carry them in-store.

Blue Planet Surf shop offered the Altered line of electric skateboards about 10 years ago, according to owner Robert Stehlik, who sold them through a separate business called Bionic Wheels. He dropped them after an eight-year run, shifting his focus to stand-up paddleboards.

Since getting an E-GO Cruiser two months ago, Kievlan said he’s been using it to commute from Diamond Head to his shop near Ala Moana Center. He sees it catching on with commuters.

"Now you’re able to enjoy the breeze along the way," he said. "You can stop at local shops, get some coffee at the cafe and not have to find parking every time you stop. It gives you a way to enjoy the city."

A lever on the controller sends the Cruiser forward or slows it to a stop. To recharge, the board can be plugged into any 110-volt outlet, though it will take three to five hours.

Kievlan says electric skateboards are allowed on city sidewalks, and he’s advocating for them to be permitted on roadways as well. Hono­lulu Police Department spokes­woman Michelle Yu said there are no city ordinances addressing motorized or electric skateboards. Skateboarders generally are regulated by the same rules as pedestrians and should be on sidewalks, not roads. (The exception is in Wai­kiki, where skateboards, roller skates, toy vehicles and similar devices are banned from sidewalks.)

During a demonstration of the E-GO Cruiser, Nicole Atencio-Olewiler, 26, seemed to have the hang of it as she skateboarded gracefully across a crosswalk and on to a sidewalk.

"I’m not a skateboarder, by any means," she said. "It’s comfortable. … You improve really quickly. I’m surprised how quickly you learn how to balance."

Kievlan said the E-GO Cruiser beat a car, by about 10 minutes, in test runs from University Avenue and Dole Street in Manoa to the intersection of 9th and Wai­alae avenues in Kai­muki.