In comparison to having to hop off a train and walking through crowded streets to get to a bus, many find electric scooters a preferable option that not only saves time but helps to make their commute more comfortable.
There are a few key aspects that make scooters ideal for commutes. Here are a few of them.
Are they fast enough?
During the morning commute, a lot of focus is rightly placed on getting to work on time. After the commute, many people can’t wait to get to the comfort of their homes. With that being the case, the question of whether or not electric scooters are fast enough for riders to be able to get to work on time is critical.
The speed of an electric scooter will depend on the model and the make. However, the general trend has been that electric scooters have been getting very fast. It is not uncommon for an electric scooter to have speeds of up to 25 mph. Settling the question: yes, they are fast enough to allow you to get to work on time.
Another advantage of electric scooters is that they don’t get stuck in traffic, especially in cities with wide cycle paths. That isn’t the case with cars and buses. For those who live in busy cities where traffic jams are a common feature, a scooter will make a vast difference.
Do they offer flexibility?
For this one, the answer is an obvious and emphatic yes. Especially when comparing them to buses and trains. You might have to take two buses to get work, getting off one and perhaps walking to a different station to catch the other.
The good thing about scooters, as with personal cars, is that you can head straight to wherever you want to go. If you decide to stop to get yourself, say, a sandwich on the way to work, that’s entirely up to you. That’s much harder to do with public transport.
Another flexibility advantage electric scooters have over public transportation is that a rider can easily change routes. Using Google maps or an app of your choice, you can check and compare traffic for different routes, allowing you to decide which one will be faster.
Another flexibility trait offered by electric scooters is that you can set your own schedule. Unlike public transportation, electric scooters allow you to leave at a time of your choosing. Public transportation usually operates on schedules.
Do they offer enough range?
Electric scooter batteries have been getting better and better with time. It’s quite common to find electric scooters with ranges exceeding 20km. If your commute isn’t very long, a scooter will most likely be able to easily handle it.
It’s important that the battery depletion of electric scooters is often dependent on speed and how you ride. So if you intend to ride a bit longer, medium speed is advised. In any case, your electric scooter is certainly able to cover the full length of your commute if you work within a small to mid-size city.
If you work in a larger city and need a couple of rides to get home, cutting down the time taken by one train or bus ride is a good idea. That’s made even more convenient by the fact that you’ll find many electric scooters that are light and easily foldable, allowing you to easily carry them onto the train or bus.
How about reliability?
One of the biggest reliability factors with electric scooters comes from the fact that you choose when you want to leave. With public transportation, you might have planned to get to work at a certain time but if the train or bus is canceled, that will most likely mean that you’ll be late.
Electric scooters are being built with more and more durability, so breaking down isn’t usually a big concern. However, if you do experience problems with it, you can always tell long before it becomes serious due to changes in the way it rides.
Further reliability is given to electric scooters by the fact that charging them takes a very short time. For many models, 3.5 hours is enough to get a good charge that can take you to and from work.
For those with longer commutes, a quick charge while at work is often enough to provide enough power. That’s from a dead battery to a full charge. If you’re charging your scooter after leaving home with a full charge, an hour should be enough to give you enough power to get home even if you ride at full speed.
Are they safe and comfortable?
Over the years, stability on electric scooters has been greatly improved. Falling from your scooter is often highly unlikely. Brakes are often very responsive, allowing you to stop whenever you feel the need to. How safe your commutes on an electric scooter will be are in large part dependent on how careful you are. As long as you’re attentive to the traffic around you, you shouldn’t encounter any problems.
As for comfort, scooters certainly offer much more of it than public transportation. That is more so the case if you’re someone who likes their own space. Riding an electric scooter can give you some true alone time before you start work.
Scooters also offer you the convenience of going at the speed that suits you on that particular commute, If you’re running late for a meeting, you can ride much faster, as long as you’re careful.
Mornings, when you wake up well before you start work, are more suited to slower and relaxing rides. Dictating the speed of a bus or train as a passenger, on the other hand, is nearly impossible.
Electric scooters can certainly be great for commuting, especially for those who don’t work very far away from home. Those who do can always fold their electric scooters and step on the bus or train with them.
Anyone looking to add flexibility and reliability to their commutes will benefit from the use of an electric scooter.