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Title: Electric scooters... coming soon! Post by: Red Squirrel on October 21, 2018, 11:40:20 Just watched this YouTube video (https://youtu.be/_M_d7EIaXV4) explaining the economics of the electric scooter hire business - well worth a watch in my opinion. I think it is a fair bet that you will be seeing these in a city near you fairly soon (if you haven't already); they fit into a pattern of selling 'mobility' as a product, with scooters filling in the 'last mile' much more effectively than hire-by-the-hour bicycles. I wonder if Keith Williams is factoring this into his review? (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-announces-root-and-branch-review-of-rail)
Title: Re: Electric scooters... coming soon! Post by: ray951 on October 21, 2018, 21:07:55 Not in the UK as I believe that they can't be used legally on the road. I believe that the can't be used on the road because they don't have pedals and cannot be classed as a cycle. And to be classed as a motorised vehicle they would need insurance and a licence which are not currently available.
Title: Re: Electric scooters... coming soon! Post by: Red Squirrel on October 22, 2018, 10:22:02 That's a good point - in the UK you can only have e-bikes that go when you pretend to pedal. Someone needs to work out how to make a scooter that goes when you pretend to scoot...
Title: Re: Electric scooters... coming soon! Post by: Red Squirrel on October 23, 2018, 11:11:43 At the Global Parliament of Mayors Summit, held in Bristol on Monday, dinner was 'sponsored' by Bird (https://www.bird.co/) - an electric scooter hire company... (see Bristol 24/7 (http://)).
Electric scooter hire firms are lobbying the DfT hard to change UK law to align with, well, most of the rest of the world. Watch this space... Title: Re: Electric scooters... coming soon! Post by: Bmblbzzz on October 23, 2018, 11:47:03 Legality is in practice a distraction. The electric skateboards, "hoverboards", Swegways, Segways, electric monowheels you see on the streets already are illegal. A lot of electric bikes are technically illegal (breach the maximum speed or power regulations or give power without pedalling), as are a surprising amount of cars (untaxed, no MoT, etc). The practical problems to the popularity of escoots will be reliability, ease of charging, cost (presumably they will start by giving them away, as in various Californian cities) and how useful they actually turn out to be in local topography and journeys.
Title: Re: Electric scooters... coming soon! Post by: Red Squirrel on October 23, 2018, 12:31:56 Do have a look at the vid I linked to in the OP. It's not long, and it explains all these things - admittedly in a US context, but most would hold true here if we weren't out of step with normality legality-wise...
Title: E-Scooters - Paris and London. Congestion solutions for Exeter and Bristol? Post by: grahame on November 27, 2018, 13:54:28 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-46349747/the-electric-scooter-scheme-taking-over-paris
Quote Hundreds of the two-wheeled vehicles have appeared on the city's streets, but some residents have voiced concerns over the scheme. The issue has made its way to French government, where a bill has been presented which would ban scooters from riding on pavements. Scooter campaigners say the answer lies in creating more scooter and bike lanes. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-london-45608874/should-rules-be-changed-for-electric-scooters-in-london Quote Should rules be changed for electric scooters in London? Whether travelling on the Tube or a bus there are many ways to get around London. Electric scooters are becoming increasingly popular with some people using them to commute to work. But they are currently not allowed on public roads and users are calling on regulations to be changed. Title: Re: E-Scooters - Paris and London. Congestion solutions for Exeter and Bristol? Post by: Red Squirrel on November 27, 2018, 14:01:43 Maybe merge with this?
http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=20544.0 Title: Re: E-Scooters - Paris and London. Congestion solutions for Exeter and Bristol? Post by: grahame on November 27, 2018, 14:16:29 Maybe merge with this? http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=20544.0 Ooops yes! This page is printed from the "Coffee Shop" forum at http://gwr.passenger.chat which is provided by a customer of Great Western Railway. Views expressed are those of the individual posters concerned. Visit www.gwr.com for the official Great Western Railway website. Please contact the administrators of this site if you feel that content provided contravenes our posting rules ( see http://railcustomer.info/1761 ). The forum is hosted by Well House Consultants - http://www.wellho.net |