Sea Bubbles are small vehicles equipped with foils, allowing them to fly over water, and can carry 4 people plus a pilot. These ecological taxis aim to cross Paris in less than a quarter of an hour. The four foils rest on the water and allow the bubble to lift while the submerged propellers create sufficient speed for the bubble to fly (about 11 km/h). With this system of foils, the Sea Bubbles would have a range of 80 to 100 km. Electrically powered, these bubbles are recharged by solar panels and tidal turbines.
"Thanks to the foils, we reduce drag by 40%, which allows us to use an electric motor that emits no pollution. The batteries are located under the floor of the passenger compartment, just like in a Tesla car." explained Alain Thébault, who initiated the project, in Sciences & Avenir. The latter had already developed in 1994 the hydrofoil, a catamaran that "flies" thanks to its foils and daggerboard.
When the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, got wind of the project, she contacted the navigator in November 2015 so that Paris would be the first city to test this rather crazy project. "It's not anecdotal. Sea Bubble, it's going to be a transport that I think will be the future taxi service on the Seine, potentially." explained Ms. Hidalgo in her greetings to the press.
" We're in discussion with Ports of Paris to find out where we're going to install them. We'll need a special pontoon and an electric recharge.. "Jean-Louis Missika, deputy mayor in charge of urban planning and attractiveness, told AFP. But another problem arises, that of speed. Sea Bubble will only be able to fly at speeds above 11 km/h, while speed on the Seine is limited to 12 km/h. The designers are therefore studying how to respect the speed limit, but may have to ask the regional prefect for an exemption.
There are still several steps to go before these electric bubbles move around the capital. Notably the chosen economic model of a future taxi fleet. By June 2017, between 5 and 10 bubbles are expected to enter into service on the Seine as experimental river taxis.
