Pedestrians nudge each other as the two students speed past MetaForum on the electrical beer crates they have built themselves. Guido and Christophe are oblivious; by now they are used to the attention. Not that this was ever about being the center of attention, the high-school friends from Maastricht are keen to stress. Buntinx, TU/e Mechanical Engineering student: “We just like creating stuff out of anything and everything. In the past we have made a hot tub and a radio from beer crates.”

Their initial ideas for using a beer crate as a mode of transport were sparked some three years ago. Westerveld: “We made the first one in a couple of days, using some old iron.” The versions they are riding around on today involved more work; they are the result of five months' effort this past winter. Turning over the crate, you can easily see how they have fitted in all the parts. The motor, the disc brakes, the voltage regulator, the battery - everything is packed into the base.

Only after they had ridden on it, did they realize that it had the potential to become a mobility scooter. Buntinx: “We took a look at the regulations and discovered that with a couple of modifications, like adding a rear light, it would be allowed on the roads as a mobility scooter.” The beer crate mobility scooter has a maximum speed of 45 kilometers, and can make trips of about 30 kilometers.

They make regular use their original means of transport, which they have dubbed Reib (bier in reverse). As you'd expect, their mobile beer crates have already attracted media coverage. Online news provider 1Limburg posted a video of a motorist in Gulpen who couldn't believe his eyes, and a couple of days ago a pedestrian was completely taken aback when ‘a man on a beer crate set off when the stoplight turned green’. On Monday Editie NL was filming on the TU/e campus (see below).