Opinion : E-scooters? Surely E-trikes would be better?

E-scooters parked beside Desborough Road, High Wycombe. (Archive picture)

Have you heard about the E-scooter trial taking place in High Wycombe and Aylesbury?

According to an article published in the news section of this site a few days ago it seems the trial of the newfangled E-scooters has proven to be very popular. Indeed during the first week of the trial the fleet of 50 scooters were ridden for a combined total of 2,850 miles.

Even my good self has noticed the bright yellow scooters parked beside the pavement at specific locations during my lunchtime walk around the town centre.

There are scooter parks at the end of the High Street beside the Library Gardens as well as at the junction of Desborough Road and Desborough Avenue (pictured above).

The other day yours truly stood for a few moments to admire the magnificent scooters neatly parked on the pavement. They certainly are magnificent machines.

In my younger day your humble servant would not have hesitated to jump onto a scooter and made my way back into the town centre. But, alas, it’s been many years since my good self last rode a bike, with my advancing years and terrible obesity sadly I fear it would not be wise for me to start whizzing around town on one of the E-scooters.

But the E-scooter looked so tempting. If only the E-transport technology being used was suitable for everyone and not just youngsters and the physically fit.

Sadly the use of a two wheel transport device has disenfranchised me of being able to take part in the E-transport trial.

Surely what the town really needs are three wheeled E-trikes rather than two wheeled E-scooters?

After all the use of three wheeled vehicle means that balancing is no longer an issue so more people, including my good self, could avail themselves of the new technology.

Why can’t a powered three wheel tricycle be constructed and offered as part of the trial. A three wheel design would require a back axle and other chassis components that could even be used to incorporate more battery packs to provide extra range.

Perhaps a simple seat could be added too to make the vehicle comfortable to ride for longer distances?

A trike could even have a little basket added on the back for carrying items purchased from the shops. The two wheeled scooters currently being trialled are hardly going to help increase sales in the town centre shops as it’s not really good to be riding a scooter with two bags of shopping dangling from the handle bars.

A three wheeled trike would also be wider by its very design thus making it harder to ride on the pavement when pedestrians are around.

The use of E-vehicles that can be hired on demand is a good idea but in my view the E-vehicles should have been of the three wheeled variety for increased stability thus opening up the scheme to more than just the young and physically fit.

In my opinion the sole use of two wheeled scooters in the E-transport trial is yet another example of the restricted thinking that is holding the town (and ultimately the country) back and until more suitable E-vehicles are used the scheme will continue to be one that excludes a large part of the population of the town.

What do you think?

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