FEATURE
association, the goal is not active travel as such, but reducing reliance on heavy, polluting cars by giving people access to much lighter electric vehicles. Roetynck pointed out that walking and cycling are simply not an option for many of the roughly 90 million disabled people in the EU. Defining desirable mobility solely around active travel therefore risks excluding them from cleaner alternatives to the car: “It really keeps people away from means of transport that could offer them huge benefits.” Light electric vehicles can fill that gap, but the morass of
PHOTO BY JONATHAN BORBA ON PEXELS
Can e-scooters drive modal shift from cars? One of the main reasons cited in the drive for e-scooters is a modal shift from cars, ultimately reducing congestion. Rental e-scooter data in the UK is mixed on this front, with the DfT and Transport for London indicating that only a minority of the modal shift comes from motor vehicles, while the majority comes from other forms of travel such as public transport and walking. Pointing to this data, Dollimore said, “The key thing for me
is it was showing a degree of modal shift away from walking and public transport and cycling rather than what we wanted, which was modal shift away from driving.” Cycling UK has quite a strong position on e-scooters: “Our position is very clear. They’re not active travel.” Dollimore expanded, adding, “They’re not something that has a health benefit from using. It’s not like walking and cycling are the same, and the strongest case for investing in walking and cycling is the health benefits they offer. You don’t get that with e-scooters.” For London, Transport for London Phase 2 research found the modal switch from other forms of travel to e-scooters included: ● 48.1% walking ● 8.2% cycling ● 7% car/taxi/private hire For the national DfT UK-wide modal shift data in December 2021: ● 42% walking ● 21% private motor vehicle/taxi ● 18% public transport ● 10% cycling However, Roetynck said the German traffic modelling study LEV4Climate showed the potential of e-scooters as part of wider light electric mobility. “The researchers had nine different vehicles starting with e-scooters all the way to microcars, and for every trip they chose the lightest possible vehicle. They found that 76% of all car trips in Germany could be made with a light electric vehicle, which would cut passenger car emissions by 44%, or 57 million tonnes of CO2- equivalent a year.” LEVA-EU challenges that framing more directly. For the
12 | November 2026
regulation affecting e-mobility in the EU stands in the way. Roetynck gave the example of the e-scooter: “There are a lot of people who would be interested in e-scooters if there were a seat on it. An e-scooter with a seat or without a seat — hardly anything changes when it comes to kinetic energy.” But under current rules, she pointed out, “Put a seat on it, and it becomes a moped [under EU regulations] – where on earth is the common sense in all this?” While Cycling UK’s position is quite tough, the Walk Wheel
Trust’s position is somewhat softer, aligning more closely with Roetynck’s point that people of all physical abilities should be able to get out without using a car. Simpson said, “E-scooters are a great addition to the transport mix, helping to reduce urban traffic and air pollution. We’re the charity making it possible for everyone to walk, wheel and cycle, and we’ll stay focused on active travel. Everyone deserves the benefits it brings – for their health, our NHS, and the joy it brings.” For Roetynck, the case for modal shift is that the more light personal vehicles are on the road, the fewer heavy combustion-engine and electric cars and trucks will be used. That benefits everyone. She added, “To be honest, we don’t care what is being used as long as it’s electric and as long as it’s light.” In her home in Gent (B), she pointed out that she uses her car so infrequently that she and her husband often forget where they’ve left it, and they only really use it to visit her husband’s family in the UK 3-4 times a year.
A safely regulated future? After six years of trials, the debate has moved beyond whether e-scooters should be legalised. Cycling UK wants a more precautionary framework; Walk Wheel Cycle Trust wants an end to the current legal limbo; and LEVA-EU argues that regulating scooters in isolation risks repeating the fragmentation already seen across Europe. Dan Simpson, Policy and Public Affairs Manager England at
Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, summed up his view on legalisation, saying: “We need to end the legal purgatory e-scooters are in – it’s bad for those who want to use them and for regulating their use.”
The decision facing government is therefore not simply whether to allow private e-scooters onto British roads, but what it wants them — and the wider family of light electric vehicles — to achieve. ●
www.bikebiz.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
