Are electric scooters good for the planet? Only if they replace car trips

When only one-third of e-scooter rides displace automobile travel, use of e-scooters likely increases overall transportation emissions by drawing people away from walking, biking or public transport

Shared dockless electric scooters, or e-scooters, transport riders over short distances in cities. Ride share companies promote them as an environmentally friendly choice that reduces dependence on cars.

To properly assess these claims, it’s important to consider all relevant environmental factors, including the materials and energy required to manufacture scooters, the impacts of collecting them daily for charging and redistributing, and the electricity that charges their batteries.

I study methods for assessing environmental impacts of products and materials. In a newly published study, I show that e-scooter programs