Did you notice how the number of electric scooters on the streets is constantly increasing? That’s no coincidence – the market for these devices is growing. In 2019 alone the market cap was over $18,5 billion. No wonder that new producers emerge all the time, everyone wants to make some buck off of a popular trend.
How did electric scooters get so popular?
The growing demand for them is thanks to a few reasons. One of the most definite ones is the lack of dependance on fossil fuels. The scooter is powered by an electric engine, so it doesn’t emit fumes, which are the main cause of smog. Another vital reason is their mobility. They’re smaller than motorcycles, and allow their users to ride not only on the road, but on the sidewalk as well. Thanks to that, the electric scooters can save you a lot of stress and time, especially when the city is trying to combat rush hours.
Being used so often, this also causes dangers and problems, mostly for those who rent them out. Biggest of those dangers is the fact, that you can’t just leave the scooter on the street, but there are no parking lots that’d allow to keep returns in order.
Electric scooters are sometimes left in less frequented alleyways, or even woods where they are prone to be tipped over or vandalized. It’s a common argument, that an electric scooter on its’ side is a danger for people with disabilities, especially the blind. Number of startups trying to solve that problem is staggering. It’s a very important issue – if the perceived danger is high, governments will most likely pass regulations on using electric scooters, which could make this very likeable means of transportation disappear from the market.
What future awaits electric scooters?
Let’s look at the forecasts first. We’re expecting a rise in market value – and not just a rise, because it’s forecasted that globally it will cap at around $42 billion by the end of the decade. But, for that to come, the technology will have to be constantly upgraded by the producers, in order to make use of the chance that stands before them.
The batteries nowadays can power up to 30km rides. It takes around three hours to charge it. Considering we don’t use them for long travels, these statistics are pretty satisfactory. Still, we can expect the producers to try and develop accumulators that will last longer and charge faster.
The three most popular kinds of batteries now are:
- SLA,
- NiMH
- Li-on.
It’s estimated that by 2030, the most popular ones will be SLAs and Li-ons, however we can’t say for sure that another contender won’t come up in the meantime and win that competition.
The chinese market especially is hard at work researching new kinds of batteries that would allow them to increase their performance. Taking in consideration the fact that Xiaomi is one of the biggest electric scooter producers, we can expect to have a revolution at hand.
Growing importance of sharing economy.
Electric scooters are one of the main reasons why sharing (renting under certain circumstances, rather than buying) is becoming more popular. It’s hard to dismiss that such an approach to the client is trending now, even here in Poland, and it boils down to positive feedback coming from people using this service. Renting allows us to save money, and it also leaves us free of maintanance costs. Maintanance is provided by the renting parlor, saving us even more.
This trend will probably keep on growing, which in turn will make electric scooters even more popular.
Many producers – many ways of charging.
As you could imagine, number of e-scooter producers increasing means that each new device needs a different kind of a charger. This will prove a challenge for cities meaning to offer charging services in their vicinity. Putting up numerous chargers is a waste of space that could be used for other, more attractive investments. What do we – jCharge – propose under such circumstances?
We have access to devices that allow for charging different kinds of electric scooters in one spot. They match the kind of e-scooter you’re trying to charge, meaning that one-time investment in our charger rids you of the problem of incompatibility.
Energy is produced using solar panels, so the power for scooters is environmentally-friendly.
If you’re interested in what jCharge has to offer, click here, and we’ll show you what we can do.
Source: Grand View Research