Are electric bikes and scooters the future of transport after coronavirus? (Or will it just be cars?)

Jun 05, 2020, 05:25 PM

Since lockdown began in March, there has been a huge uptick in cycling and walking, as people got out and about while staying at home. 

But while before coronavirus we were all told public transport was a good thing, now with restrictions easing and Britain slowly going back to work, Britons have been told to actively avoid it.

Does that mean the inevitable return of the car, or with the Government promising billions to create a new era for cycling and walking, is there a brighter and greener future for mobility

Could one of the keys be electric bicycles and scooters? Editor Simon Lambert reveals all to host Georgie Frost and assistant editor Lee Boyce after giving a GoCycle GX folding electric bike a trial.

How good are the batteries, how long do they take to charge, how much do they cost, what schemes are available to purchase them and what is the point of them?

Meanwhile, the car industry has been rocked by Covid-19, with job losses aplenty and sales grinding to a halt.

Registrations sank 89 per cent to the record-lowest May since 1952, but despite that, sales of electric vehicles were up 22 per cent – and the Tesla Model 3 was the best seller.

Could it be time to head to a showroom to haggle a bargain, will there be yet another scrappage scheme and why has Fiat launched a pay-as-you-go model of ownership?

This weekend could also be a good time to fill up, with petrol prices set to head higher after weeks of lower motoring costs: many Britons have been able to find unleaded for under £1 a litre.

And finally, with more people using their cars to make deliveries, are they properly insured?