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Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Electric Scooters: Why Are They Becoming Very Popular?

Scooters are fun rides and they are ideal for short trips to the grocery and other local errand, around the neighborhood, and going to and from the school.

As gasoline prices increase, scooters are finding its place in the market. People start appreciating this compact and efficient way of traveling. Last year alone, the sales of scooters doubled which is a good benchmark for its rising popularity and practicality.

The advantages of riding an electric scooter include:

  • Huge savings in gas. Depending on the make and model, an electric scooter will travel 70 miles for a gallon of gas.
  • It gives you the freedom of traveling even when you have lost your driving privileges, driving on very narrow streets, creating shortcuts, making point to point travel, and not depending on public transport.
  • Riding on electric scooters was a good alternative for the Chinese, Thai’s and other Southeast Asian nations during the SARS outbreak as it allows them to travel without the fear of contacting the disease in cramped public transport.
  • Scooters are easily parked and tucked away. Electric scooters are small enough to be taken inside a public transport and require very little space for parking. It could be tucked away in a small space while being recharged.
  • Electric scooters do not emit fumes and pollutants like its gas fed counterpart.
  • Electric scooters are fun to drive and in many cases are considered to be more romantic than the gas fed scooters when dating.
  • Electric scooters have better hill climbing capability when compared to its gas-powered engines that also have delays during the ramp up.

Electric scooters work by adding a battery and a motor to a kick scooter. Normally, bicycle hand breaks are used, a switch that controls the speed is mounted and batteries are fitted beneath the feet.

Electric scooters are often seen as toys. Because of this, there are still very few regulations to the use of electric scooters. Its speed ranges from a low of 10 MPH to 30 MPH. With some designs, the driver can coast freewheel while others do not.

Electric scooters accelerate easily and have a better climbing capability. The batteries are rechargeable from an ordinary electrical outlet. Every charging is approximately .05 cents, and you can expect full charging in less than eight hours although many electrical scooters are fast chargers.

The performance of your electric scooters, like most vehicles can heavily affected by the terrain (hills, road construction, inclines and slopes), wind conditions, tire inflation, the weight of its load, the size of its batteries and the systems efficiency.

Depending on the make, electric scooter price ranges from $250 to $2000+. Many people when buying prefer to trust the brand. However, if you are planning to buy an electric scooter, do not pick something based on the price alone and even by the brand factor alone. Branding for sure can help as bigger and better known manufacturers will protect their reputation but it will always be smart to check the scooter out if it is solidly made. Well made scooters can easily be repaired and parts could be available. When choosing an electric scooter, ask your dealer about reparability and parts availability. Those that are not solidly made may be cheaper but you might not be enjoying longer rides with it and when the electric scooter breaks down, they could be as good as gone.

Robert Thatcher is a freelance publisher based in Cupertino, California. He publishes articles and reports in various ezines and provides electric scooter resources on [http://www.your-electric-scooter.info].

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