New study finds e-scooter users visit more places and spend more money

TOURISTS who use e-scooters visit more local attractions and spend more money, a new study has found.

TOURISTS who use e-scooters visit more local attractions and spend more money, a new study has found.

The new research, conducted in Townsville by Griffith University in partnership with Neuron Mobility, found that avid e-scooter users (the top third by kilometres travelled) would spend 42 per cent more per day than those in the bottom third of use.

It supports previous research out of Darwin demonstrating the positive economic impact that e-scooters can have on a city.

Researchers found avid e-scooter users completed an average of 11 trips while in Townsville, covering nearly 26km.

When surveyed about ease of use, over 90 per cent reported it was effortless to use and more than two-thirds of respondents said they had never ridden an e-scooter before.

The demographic results also challenge a major misconception of e-scooter riders being young and mostly men, finding instead more than 47 per cent were over the age of 40 and over half of these visitors were women.

Recent research conducted by Neuron in Darwin proved the e-scooters were a boon to the city’s economic recovery by extending people’s range, allowing them to do more, see more and spend more.

The Darwin users looked favourably upon the e-scooter company, with 90 per cent of respondents saying Neuron had created a positive impact for the city.

The Top End study found nearly four out of five rides resulted in a purchase at a business, while 14 per cent of respondents said trips wouldn’t have happened at all if the e-scooters weren’t available.

About three quarters of Darwin respondents said they used the e-scooters for enjoyment, while more than half said they used the two-wheelers for ease of exploring the city and providing a faster way to get around.

A Neuron spokesman said sustainability is at the core of its e-scooter business.

“E-scooter trips often replace car journeys, reduce dangerous emissions, traffic congestion, take up a fraction of the space of a car and are extremely energy efficient,” the spokesman said.