Electric scooters can be a fun and efficient way to commute, but they’re not without their problems. Are electric scooters worth it? In this post we’ll explore the pros and cons of electric scooter transportation, and the different kinds of electric scooters out there.
They’re expensive.
Electric scooters are expensive. You have to buy a scooter, and you also have to pay for the time and effort of charging it. Then there’s the cost of repairs and maintenance, which can really add up over time.
The first step is buying an electric scooter, which can easily cost $500 or more depending on what kind you get (the cheapest ones generally start around $300). This price doesn’t include sales tax or shipping costs—you’ll probably end up spending another few hundred dollars before you even get started!
Then comes charging: if your local laws allow for it, then maybe someone else will do this for you as part of their business model; otherwise, there’s nothing stopping them from charging whatever they want in order to make ends meet—and some companies may even push themselves into bankruptcy because they’re being forced out by other competitors who don’t care about breaking any laws at all (or worse still).
They aren’t as fast as you’d think.
Electric scooters are actually not as fast as you would think. They’re obviously slower than a car or motorcycle, but they can still be dangerous if you ride them too fast. You can’t ride on the sidewalks or in the road because they aren’t legal to do so. If you decide to take your electric scooter onto the sidewalk, then most likely it will get confiscated by police officers if someone sees you riding it illegally.
There are certain laws that state where electric scooters can be ridden and where they cannot be ridden. For example, electric scooters are not allowed in bike lanes or on paved roads that have traffic going over 30 mph (45 km/h). If someone saw me riding my electric scooter at night without lights then I would definitely get ticketed for breaking this rule because it is illegal for anyone under 18 years old to operate any type of motor vehicle after dark without adequate lighting equipment (headlights).
There are strict limits on where you can ride them.
One of the biggest disadvantages of electric scooters is that you can’t ride them in certain places. Most places, electric scooters are technically legal to ride on sidewalks and other pedestrian areas but not off-road or on roadways. In some cities, there are specific regulations that apply to e-scooter riders. For example, if you live in Santa Monica, California (or any other city with similar rules), electric scooters are only allowed on sidewalks unless otherwise indicated by a sign or street markings.
In Chicago and New York City, for instance, e-scooter riders have been ticketed for riding in bike lanes because they aren’t allowed there either (although some users have gotten around it by taking the sidewalk).
The range is limited.
A second disadvantage of electric scooters is their limited range. The average electric scooter has a range of 10 to 15 miles, which may be enough for some people but certainly not everyone. If you are planning on using your scooter for longer distances, it might be worth considering an option that offers a larger battery and hence a greater driving range.
The main reason why the battery doesn’t last as long on some models can be attributed to their size and weight: they are typically smaller than their gas-powered counterparts, so they simply don’t have the same amount of power stored in them at any given time.
To put this into perspective: for every kWh (kilowatt hour) stored in your typical car’s tank, an electric car would need about 20 kWh worth of energy storage; whereas an e-scooter might only hold between 2 and 5 kilowatt hours worth of energy storage! In other words – what would take many hours to drive with gasoline-powered vehicles could take only 30 minutes or less with an e-scooters’ battery life!
Another important thing to note here is that these batteries aren’t designed for frequent use; rather they’re meant for infrequent use over longer periods of time so even though you might not get as much distance out of them on each charge cycle as compared to other types like regular gas-powered vehicles–they’ll last much longer since there won’t be any wear & tear caused by frequent use!
They’re a little too heavy to take upstairs.
You can’t take them upstairs. Electric scooters are heavy and awkward to lift, so you can’t take them into your house or office building. They also don’t fit onto a train or plane (even if you could get it on). And as for concerts? You have to be pretty dedicated to enjoy music on an electric scooter.
In summary: if you have stairs, no place indoors where you can leave it overnight, and absolutely no interest in concerts or traveling by plane/train/bus then maybe an electric scooter isn’t right for you
They need charging after every use.
The fact that electric scooters need to be charged after every use is a disadvantage, but it’s also one of the reasons that they can be so much fun. If you live in a city like San Francisco or New York City and are looking for an alternative way to get around town, then an electric scooter is definitely worth considering.
Just keep in mind that charging time varies depending on the battery capacity of your particular model. You’ll also want to make sure it’s safe for your battery if you have one designed specifically for use with electric scooters or bicycles; if not, at least remember that there will always be some risk involved when charging any type of device!
You can’t go in the rain, or even damp weather…or the cold…or anywhere too far from home.
The big problem with electric scooters is that they are designed for use in the dry and temperate climate of Southern California. They cannot be used in rain, snow, ice or extreme temperatures. This means that you can’t use your electric scooter if it rains or snows on your way home from work. You also can’t use it on a hot summer day when you want to go for a ride at the beach with friends.
If you try to ride your electric scooter in any kind of bad weather (like rain or snow), it will stop working immediately because water damages its electrical components. This makes life difficult if you live somewhere with unpredictable weather patterns!
It’s illegal to not wear a helmet (but you probably should anyway).
As we’ve already mentioned, electric scooters are a fun and convenient way to get around. But there’s one drawback you should know about before you go out and buy one: some laws require that you wear a helmet while riding.
This is especially true if you live in California, which has very strict helmet laws. If you’re caught without a helmet while riding an electric scooter anywhere in the state of California—even on private property—you could be fined $25 to $100 for not wearing one!
While some people may think this law is too harsh, it’s important to remember that helmets are required by law in many places because they can significantly help prevent injuries when they’re used properly. The Centers for Disease Control reports that 90% of all head injuries from motor vehicle crashes involve motorcyclists or bicyclists who weren’t wearing helmets at the time of their accident [source]. So wear your helmet! And if yours doesn’t fit or isn’t comfortable enough for your needs, there are plenty of ways to find affordable options online (and even some free ones).
You can’t store it in your apartment.
One of the biggest disadvantages of electric scooters is that you can’t store them in your apartment. If you live in a small place and are trying to conserve space, a scooter can be a problem. You have to take it down when you’re done with it and put it back up when you want to use it again—and this might not always be possible depending on where you live.
If your apartment doesn’t have an outdoor area where you can park the scooter, then storing it will be even more difficult. Most apartments don’t have any room for extra storage or parking spots (especially if they’re older), so unless there’s an area designated for vehicles like these outside of each building then most people won’t have anywhere else to leave their scooters after using them for the day or night respectively.”
It’s not easy to find a place to rent one in the first place.
Finding a place to rent one can be a chore in and of itself. Depending on the city you’re in, there may not be many dockless scooter companies operating within the area at all (or they might not have any at all). If there are scooters available, they may not always be in convenient locations—or even close enough to where you live or work that it would make sense for you to use them regularly.
Some people don’t like having them around their neighborhood because of how they look or what people think about them riding around on a scooter instead of walking, which could cause issues with everyone else’s property values as well.
Electric scooters are still not quite ready for prime time
Electric scooters are not ready for prime time. They’re expensive, heavy, and have a limited range. You can’t ride them at night or on rainy days because they don’t have lights or fenders. You also need to charge them after every use—and that’s a big hassle if you live in an apartment building with no off-street parking where your electric scooter is going to be parked all day while you’re at work.
Getting an electric scooter will make it harder for you to get around town since they are illegal to ride without a helmet (even though the California DMV has declared them legal). And did we mention their high costs?
So, are electric scooters worth it?
We hope you now have a better idea of the pros and cons of electric scooters. While they have a lot going for them, it’s clear that there are some major issues with them as well. The biggest problem is that they’re still pretty expensive, and they don’t offer enough speed or range to really compete with bikes as transportation devices. If you live in a big city where parking can be tough, though, then this could be an option worth looking at if you’re willing to make sacrifices on other fronts like weight capacity or speed.