I have seen the future

I have seen the future. And so have you. The future is electric scooters. They are going to change everything.

Thanks to the so-called lockdown we’ve only seen glimpses of the new way of travel, but it won’t be long until the glimpse becomes a constant blur of scooters.

For the time being, scooters are used by younger people. As I made an essential shopping trip to Sainsbury’s (mushrooms), I noted half a dozen scooters at the end of my road. When I arrived in the car park, there were, I suppose, eight or none young scallywags buzzing their way between shoppers and parked vehicles. I thought straight away: this will soon become the norm.

When the city centre of Bristol is reopened there will be hundreds of them sharing the pavements with crowds of shoppers. When the pubs and clubs are open again, a popular means of transport in and out of town will be the scooter. Why pay an arm and a leg for a taxi home when you can hire a scooter and leave it outside your house? The thought also crossed my mind that perhaps not every scooter rider will be a model of sobriety. Inevitably, this will increasingly become an issue.

People will start buying scooters and use them for school, college or even work, as well as shopping trips. When things return to normal, they will be everywhere. Mark my words.