One of the world’s most common problems that has long riddled transportation and urban planning engineers is the traffic congestion. Especially those living in large cities, the effects of traffic congestion have a tremendous effect on the people’s lives in many ways.
But Verizon – that’s right, a communications company – has thought of a solution to beat the worsening traffic conditions: a sports utility vehicle that cuts through traffic in the most unimaginable way.
Called the Hum Rider, it was designed to go over cars during gridlock. The Jeep Grand Cherokee has a custom undercarriage that can lift the entire vehicle about five feet in the air, providing just enough clearance to let it drive over cars.
GIF via Giphy
Video via Hum Rider
Its driver can still see if it can go over cars in the front or back thanks to the four-camera system which gives the driver a bird’s eye view as the vehicle rises into the air.
The Hum Rider uses a Honda generator to run its hydraulic lift system and in-wheel electric motors, pumping fluid through 300 feet of hydraulic lines. Now it weighs over 8,500 pounds with the structure of the vehicle heavily reinforced.
Most of the special features, which can be activated at the push of a button on the dashboard, are the brainchild of special effects house A2ZFX. Scott Beverly, one of the men behind the visual effects in sci-fi films like Interstellar and Inception, pitched the crazy idea.
GIF via Giphy
Not only did Verizon made the Hum Rider to beat the traffic, it was also developed to promote its ‘cloud-connected’ car technology.
However, it is unfortunate that the company has no plans to mass produce this great vehicle, but it says that the tech it is selling could. Verizon’s Hum subscription service comes with a suite of telematics features to old car models that include vehicle diagnostics, emergency assistance, and a speeding alert.
Sources: Fox News | Design Boom
