What to Know
- Does even just the thought of your commute exhaust you? Would you try a personal flying car-like contraption to get from NJ to NYC?
- A Silicon Valley-based company has filed an application with NJ Department of Environmental Preservation to bring in 'The Flyer'
- It's a single-person electric aircraft that uses a hangar and floating dock, cruising 3 to 10 feet above water
We've seen all kinds of innovative (and not always legal) ways to commute in the New York City area -- from paddleboarding across the Hudson River (in a suit) to chasing a bus 20 blocks, begging the driver to open the door, but this is new.
Kitty Hawk Corporation, a Silicon-valley based company funded by Google co-founder Larry Page, has filed an application with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to add its Flyer aircraft to the repertoire of the ever-growing transit options between New York City and the Garden State.
The Flyer, a single-person electric aircraft that uses a hangar and floating dock, cruising 3 to 10 feet above water; it includes 10 "lift fans" and already has traveled more than 25,000 times, according to Jersey Digs, which first reported the application had been filed.
A Kitty Hawk told Jersey Digs that at this point, New Jersey is just one of the locations it is looking into -- but Jersey City appears to be very much into the idea.
Mayor Steven Fulop told News 4 Jersey City has been away for several months about the request for proposal process and his city's role as a potential key location.
"We’re extremely excited at the prospect of being the first in the nation where Kitty Hawk is available," Fulop said. "Exploring alternative modes of transportation is important for a city like Jersey City, being the destination and transportation hub that we are."
A time frame for potential development wasn't immediately clear.
