In Japan, A Start-Up Unveils A £495,000 Hoverbike.

Key Sentence:

• A Japanese start-up hopes to convince motorists to swap their cars for a $680,000 (£495,000) Hoverbike bike.
• ALI Technologies’ XTurismo Limited Edition went on sale in Japan on Wednesday.

Electronics giant Mitsubishi and soccer player Keisuke Honda are two backers of the Tokyo-based company. According to ALI Technologies, the hoverbike can fly for 40 minutes at speeds of up to 100 km/h (62 mph) on this single charge. A flying car completes a test flight between airports. The company plans to produce 200 hoverbikes with a rider weight of 300 kg (47 stones) by mid-2022.

Each is equippe with a conventional motor and four battery-power motors.

“Before, the choice was whether to move on the ground or above the scale in the sky,” said Daisuke Catano, CEO of ALI Technologies. “We look forward to offering new movement methods.” Overcrowding is a significant problem for Tokyo’s 13.5 million residents.

This high-tech city is the most densely populate metropolitan area in the world. But current law prohibits hoverbikes from flying over busy roads in Japan. However, Catano hopes rescue teams will use it to reach inaccessible areas.

Ben Gardner of Pinsent Masons told News that vehicles that once seemed like the distant future are becoming more accurate every year. “Ultimately, it will be possible to see the vehicles used in the UK,” he said. Hoverbikes are not considered roadworthy under applicable UK law.

But Mr. Gardner said the focus on new technologies in recent years could signal change. Current tests on new technologies such as driverless cars, autonomous robots, and drones suggest that new modes of transportation are planned to shift from science fiction to the real world,” he said.

Venture capitalists, airlines, and even ridesharing company Uber claim the ambitious Uber Elevate has a thriving flying car industry that analysts say could cost up to $1.5 trillion by 2040.