Source: Fietsberaad

From its research, The Norwegian Institute of Transport (Transportøkonomisk Institute) has concluded that electric scooter rides replace active modes of transport (walking or cycling) more than rides involving a private motor vehicle or public transport in Europe, though the picture is different in other regions.

The researchers analysed over 100 questionnaire studies from Europe, North America and Oceania which had been previously published. Questions asked of respondents included which mode of transport they would have used if an e-scooter hadn’t have been available, and what changes occurred in trip frequency per mode after starting to use an e-scooter.

The results showed:

• More than half of e-scooter trips replaced trips involving active modes of transportation (walking or cycling).
• In Europe, 20% of e-scooter trips replaced private motor trips.
• In North America and Oceania, the electric scooter replaced the car more often (37%) than public transport (10%).

For explaining differences in replacing active trips by e-scooter, researchers found no clear location-dependent factors. Meanwhile, findings revealed that in cities with extensive metro and tram lines, e-scooter trips replaced active modes of transport less often. Public transport and active transport as a combination is believed to be a stronger competitor to the e-scooter in such cities.