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The Rise of the Electric Scooter

blog.codinghorror.com

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Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#291

Post by Symbiote »

derefr wrote: post #212
Symbiote wrote: post #190

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Copenhagen it's often the opposite: the rest of the group came by bike, they're within 20m of the current bar, the person on foot will have to turn up later. Or we all walk. (Also, the suburban trains and taxis carry bikes for free.)

> Also, the suburban trains and taxis carry bikes for free. Sure, but how many will fit on one train/taxi? Here in Vancouver we have two bike-slots per bus and ~4 per train (which is actually just general accessibility-device space, for e.g. powered-wheelchairs, and is almost always taken already.)

Taxis take two.

Wikipedia says a suburban train takes 46 bikes. I should check, as the press release from the company doesn't give a figure.

I don't commute by train, so I don't know if that's still not enough. Many people do leave a second bicycle at the station.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycling_in_Copenhagen

https://www.dsb.dk/om-dsb/presse/nyheder/mere-plads-til-cykl...

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#292

Post by Symbiote »

journalctl wrote: post #287
josephpmay wrote: post #284

Earlier quoted context omitted.

but it's still cold as fuck

Well sure. I mean, bundling up is possible, just ask anyone in Chicago. My hunch is that places with healthy bike infrastructure are also dense enough to make most trips short, minimizing time spent outside.

Winter in Copenhagen means –5°C, so it's not really the same. It is more humid than the continental USA.

But yes, the cycle paths are ploughed (often before the roadway). Nevertheless, bus and train use increases.

For cycling a long time in the rain, some people use overtrousers or other waterproof clothing.

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#293

Post by Symbiote »

scarejunba wrote: post #198
Symbiote wrote: post #190

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Copenhagen it's often the opposite: the rest of the group came by bike, they're within 20m of the current bar, the person on foot will have to turn up later. Or we all walk. (Also, the suburban trains and taxis carry bikes for free.)

What's bike theft like in Copenhagen? I have two bikes but I drive to brunch because I'm afraid of losing my bike to a thief and parking is easier to deal with than having to carry my lock.

Leave the lock at work, locked to the rack or a fence. That might not work for brunch.

Most people use either old or fairly cheap (Some people do have nicer bikes, and they chain the bikes to something solid. I did this for 6 months when my city bike was new.

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#294

Post by alexisread »

fragmede wrote: post #245
crimsonalucard wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Get a brompton.

While the folding bike concept is cool, and it's actually really handy to be able to take them on trains where a non-folding would be disallowed, and while they are also more convenient than a full size bike, they're still big and cumbersome when folded up. I can take mine on the bus, but that wouldn't be my first choice. I can take a regular Lyft, but not a Lyft Line with it. (I mean I could, but that's a dick move.…

Agree, you need something like the below to make it work, but it'd be a revolution in transport! http://www.bike-intermodal.eu/

Note that the A-bike falls into this territory, bar the tiny wheels http://www.abikecentral.com/index.html

Edit: I'd forgotten about another type, the monowheel, though they do require some skill: https://www.airwheel.net/home/product/X5

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#295

Post by blankcheque »

city41 wrote: post #290
closetohome wrote: post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> That's why you need bigger better wheels Or just one big one! https://onewheel.com I switched to one of these after having a few too many wipeouts on a longboard. It's been fantastic.

Onewheels are better than scooters in every way ... except price.

How so? Aren't they more difficult to ride and maybe more dangerous?

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#296

Post by acchow »

maccam94 wrote: post #173
eldenbishop wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This exactly: bikes require planning and strategy and are not good for improvisational day-to-day things like you described. Bikes make walking easier but all other forms of travel like bus, train or taxi/uber/cars more difficult or impossible.

Dockless and docked bikeshare programs both mitigate this issue, with trade-offs on the inconvenience of finding bikes/parking them.

Nowhere near as convenient as a scooter.

Closing the last half mile on a trip on scooter is a breeze. Sometimes the nearest bike docks at start and end total half a mile distance. Dockless bike? They are generally quite sparse where I am.

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#297

Post by edpichler »

eldenbishop wrote: post #38

I rode a non-electric kick scooter (Xootr) for three years working in downtown SF. It is by far the best form of transitional transport there is and superior to bikes for 99% of actual real world travel. It was easily 4-5 times faster than walking and more importantly suddenly made the entire city open due to how insanely efficient it was for "glueing" together various forms of public transport. I could hop from tran…

Electric skateboards are even better and funnier. But you need to pay the price of the learning curve.

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#298

Post by edpichler »

strifey wrote: post #244
eldenbishop wrote: post #38

I rode a non-electric kick scooter (Xootr) for three years working in downtown SF. It is by far the best form of transitional transport there is and superior to bikes for 99% of actual real world travel. It was easily 4-5 times faster than walking and more importantly suddenly made the entire city open due to how insanely efficient it was for "glueing" together various forms of public transport. I could hop from tran…

I've basically had the same experience but picking up skateboarding again. I spent a lot of time skateboarding as a kid, and it turns out it's also a really efficient, compact way of getting around a city too! I now feel a lot more comfortable moving further away from BART while maintaining a consistent commute time.

I am thinking of buying a skateboard instead of a scooter, to have more fun.

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#299

Post by stevesimmons »

6gvONxR4sf7o wrote: post #259
Symbiote wrote: post #190

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Copenhagen it's often the opposite: the rest of the group came by bike, they're within 20m of the current bar, the person on foot will have to turn up later. Or we all walk. (Also, the suburban trains and taxis carry bikes for free.)

Is that the case in the winter too? I just started bike commuting in SF and have been wondering how it works in bike oriented colder countries when it starts raining/snowing.

In Netherlands nearly everyone cycles for nearly all local trips all year round regardless of the weather. Nothing beats the convenience of a bike.

I use mine for every trip longer than a 5 minute walk and less than a 45 mins bike ride. That encompasses the whole of Amsterdam and its outlying suburbs.

In bad weather, people have suitable rain gear and accept getting a bit wet. Or cycle with umbrellas. As the Dutch say, "there's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing".

Re: The Rise of the Electric Scooter

#300

Post by petre »

mikepurvis wrote: post #117
petre wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

25 mph if you wear a helmet, register your vehice, get mandatory insurance and a driver's license or a drivng legislation certificate. Otherwise no. E-bikes are assisted up to 25 mph, why would e-scooters be any different? At least in Europe, if you have an e-bike that is assisted up to 25 mph or over 250 Wh continous rated power, you have to register it as a moped, wear s helmet, get insurance, pay vehicle ownership…

All those behaviours are bad, but the point of mandatory insurance is to cover liability— the ability of your choices and your equipment to incur damage and costs for others. In that regard, mandatory insurance for scooters doesn't pass the sniff test any more than mandatory insurance for people riding bicycles. Yes, you can concoct scenarios where a scooter/bike triggers a crash by doing something unexpected/illegal…

I'm not talking about push scooters, muscle operated bicycles or pedal assisted e-bikes with a power rating below or equal to what an average person delivers. This is a discussion about motorized vehicles with more powerful engines that can operate at speeds in excess of 15 mph. At 25 mph you can definitely kill a pedestrian or knock another cyclist and injure them. Bicycle licensing is unnecessary.

1/2 * (100 kg vehicle + occupant) * (45 mph)^2 = 6328 J

~7×10^3 J = Muzzle energy of an elephant gun, e.g. firing a .458 Winchester Magnum[90]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orders_of_magnitude_(energy)#1...

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