Micromobility reaches households: 1.4 million e-scooters privately owned

The idea of relieving traffic on the so-called last mile through shared micromobility only really took off with its electrification. Sharing bikes, electrified or not, were later joined by public e-scooters, which were mostly electric micro-vehicles from the start. Today, companies that do business with these vehicles are the winners of this idea. This is obvious given their sheer mass in city centers and has already led to significant regulatory approaches, primarily in cities with strong tourism. Prague imposed parking regulations; in Madrid, Paris, and Gelsenkirchen, the city centers are free of scooters, and Florence will clear its city center from April 1st.

Micromobility increasingly privately owned

However, the original sharing concept has not led to a complete switch to public scooters. Such vehicles can also be purchased privately, and as the German Federal Statistical Office “Destatis” reports today, as many as 1.4 million of these micromobiles are already privately owned. The increase appears to be steep: According to figures from the German Insurance Association (GDV), only 990,000 electric scooters were insured in Germany three years ago, and only around 790,000 units in 2022. According to figures published today by Destatis, 2.9 percent of Germany's more than 40.8 million households own at least one e-scooter that does not require a license.

E-mobility is now recording solid growth overall with e-cars, plug-in hybrids, and e-bikes. The trend towards pedelecs is stronger in no other European country than in Germany. According to a market analysis by the consulting firm EY, 54 percent of bicycles sold in Germany were e-bikes in mid-last year.  In private households, license-free e-bikes still clearly dominate. In 2023, with 12.2 million units, there were almost nine times as many pedelecs as e-scooters in private households. 20.6 percent of households reported owning at least one such e-bike. Within five years, their number has approximately tripled from 3.8 million e-bikes in 2018, Destatis writes.

But even that doesn't seem to be the end of the road. As the statistical office has found out, vehicles are “no longer just the formerly communal use (one device/vehicle per household) found, but increasingly individual ownership.” The trend towards e-scooters will likely continue for quite some time.

(fpi)