Lightweight Electric Scooters vs. Bicycles and Cars: Which is the Best Choice?

Is your workplace close enough to use a bicycle? But at the same time, are you worried about the toll it will take on your body and attire? Are you looking for a middle ground while staying eco-friendly? If that sounds like you, we have good news! An electric scooter might be a best choice.  Of course, it is not a one-size-fits-all solution. In this blog, we will break down all the pros and cons of using cars, bicycles, and electric scooters so you can decide which is perfect for you.  

- How and when are lightweight electric scooters better than cars and bicycles?

    - Budget

    - Health Benefits

    - Eco-friendliness

    - Convenience

    - Simple Storage   

- The Pros and Cons of using a Car

- The Positives and Negatives of a Bicycle

- The Merits and Demerits of riding an Adult Electric Scooter

- Concluding Thoughts

So, without further ado, let's dive into the contrastive analysis among fast high-end electric scooters, cars, and bicycles.

Electric scooters are scientifically the best in micro-mobility according to research in the Nature journal – the most prestigious scientific publication in the world. Understanding when a powerful, lightweight electric scooter makes the most sense is essential. You cannot use a bike or an electric scooter for interstate travel, but it can be your best bet for 'last mile' travels. So, electric scooters trump cars and bicycles in convenience, price, and practicality for short trips and commutes, particularly under three miles. Not only will you get more bang for your buck compared to cars, but you will also not get sweaty when you reach your destination had you taken a bicycle. Here we discuss multiple aspects that consider how and when a fast electric scooter for adults is the sensible and responsible choice.

Budget

The cost of automobiles is not particularly surprising. A car costs a lot, and then there's the ongoing expense of maintaining one. Older cars will need regular maintenance more often, but the general maintenance costs for modern vehicles are also high. If you are not using your cars too often, you may reduce your transportation costs by purchasing an electric scooter. Compared to a car, an e-scooter is far less expensive to buy and maintain.

How much does an electric scooter cost? You can purchase a regular subpar scooter for as little as $300, but a decently fast commuter electric scooter like the SmooSat SA3 Prime costs $699.97, and the most powerful model – the SmooSat MAX costs $799.97. On the other hand, someone can purchase a car for multiple thousands of dollars which is ten times the magnitude of electric scooters.

Health Benefits

Driving a car doesn't work your muscles or burn many calories. With a bicycle, you can burn out while sweating with your formal clothes in disarray at your destination.  Therefore, a fast, lightweight electric scooter strikes an outstanding balance.

Although an electric scooter does most of the work for you, it's still a generally healthier mode of transportation than a car. Whether buying an electric scooter for adults or children, these advantages apply to all models. You get to spend time outside when you ride a fast electric scooter. Outside helps you feel relaxed and less anxious, even riding in a city park or sidewalk. You must use your core to keep your scooter balanced and upright, improving your coordination and balance. Any electric scooter demands coordination and balance to operate. These all give you a more well-rounded, healthy ride than a car.

Eco-Friendliness

Initially, some debate was about the eco-friendliness of electric scooters (besides electric vehicles). However, as recently as 2022, statistics and scientific studies showed that electric scooters had exhibited climate-friendly traits in the US, especially where commute distances are shorter. It is because more and more people have embraced the sustainable lifestyle to make a contrastive study. Here are some points illustrating how eco-friendly they are.

• Top researchers at Georgia Tech have published research in Nature, saying, "(the study) definitively shows that investing in micro-mobility infrastructure such as e-bikes, e-scooters, and bike lanes can reduce traffic congestion and carbon emissions in cities." They also argued that this debunks contention, as their method was utterly data-driven.
• Asensio from GATech and others from the research group analyzed in the paper that the estimated saved time (by using e-scooters over cars and reduced congestions) for drivers nationwide translates into a monetary value of up to $536 million a year.
• Georgia Tech's Data Science and Policy Lab estimated that micro-mobility options like e-scooters could save an average of 17.4% in travel time for drivers nationally.
• On average, car maintenance can cost over $1,000 per year. While cars' annual maintenance requirements depend on how much you drive, there is almost always some job at the workshop. Moreover, operating costs and barriers to entry (purchase price) are minuscule compared to cars.
• Anthony Eggert from Forbes reported, "In cities such as Portland, Denver, and San Francisco, researchers are finding that roughly:
• 36% of e-scooter trips are replacing a walking trip 
• 10% are replacing a biking trip 
• 10% are replacing public transit trips, and
• At least 36% are replacing an automotive vehicle trip."

As such, we at SmooSat have moved away from fossil-fuel-powered vehicles to the powerful SmooSat Max, an electric scooter with stellar engineering alongside the SmooSat SA3 for ourselves and simply manufacturing them. Over 60% of our employees have embraced e-scooters as their primary vehicles. To read more about how SmooSat and electric scooters contribute to a sustainable world, please check out our blog on going green.

Convenience

Without question, lightweight electric scooters are more straightforward to use and control than cars and bicycles. However, you must pass a road test and receive a driving license. Also, you must purchase a street-legal vehicle that, in most situations, must pass an inspection.

Using an electric scooter is easy, and in most states operating one does not require a specific license. In your city, you can use the bike lane to ride one. While you should always verify your local laws, scooters are a far more straightforward kind of transportation.

This mode of transportation is much more straightforward with a folding electric scooter like the SmooSat SA3, SmooSat SA3 Prime, and our flagship – the SmooSat MAX. Fold it up and put it somewhere, like a closet. The learning curve is significantly simpler than a standard bicycle.

Simple Storage   

It is simple to store a lightweight electric scooter. You must park your car somewhere when you get home, like on the street, in your driveway, or in a garage. It's simple for a car to take up 14+ feet if you have a truck or SUV, which is a lot of room. Moreover, at your destination, if you are in a big city like NYC or Chicago, it is challenging to find parking. Furthermore, hourly parking costs may ramp up very fast. The same is true for bicycles in terms of parking and safety.

Scooters can be stored in a room's corner or a closet and are foldable for simple transportation. A scooter is necessary if you live in a small apartment or flat where parking is scarce or nonexistent. These are perfectly sized and shaped for simple storage.

In summary, electric scooters have numerous benefits compared to cars and bicycles. They are more affordable, environmentally friendly, and easy to store, and they are also healthier than a car and safer to park than a bicycle. To choose which lightweight adult electric scooter is perfect for you, head over to our guide, which discusses our diverse models in detail.