Smart Mobility Association Taiwan (SMAT) has called for more solid policy support for replacing gas-powered scooters with electric ones.
The association has released an e-scooter industry white paper, authored by smart mobility researcher Tseng Yu-chien at the ITRI Industrial Economics and Knowledge Center (ITRI IEK). The white paper provides six policy guidelines to reach 100% e-scooter sales by 2040 and overall net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Taiwan has the highest density of scooter to area in the world with more than 14 million registered scooters. The proportion of new e-scooters in all new scooters sold is about 10%. While battery-swapping e-scooters are common in densely populated cities such as Taipei and Kaohsiung, gas-powered scooters remain the most convenient for people living in areas where battery charging or swapping stations are still lacking.
Electrifying vehicles is on the top of the government priority list. SMAT reiterated that it should focus on increasing sales as much as possible, instead of lowering sales target.
According to the National Development Council (NDC), the government's goal is to reach 35% e-scooter sales and 30% electric cars by 2030.
One of the crucial means to increase e-scooter sales is providing incentives for customers. Chiou Jiunn-rong, professor at the Economics Department of National Central University (NCU), pointed out that e-scooter sales once accounted for 18.6% in 2019 but later declined to 10% as the government renewed subsidies for gas-powered scooters that year.
A legislator, Hung Meng-kai, who was also present at a SMAT press conference on September 1, said the government should not overlook traditional scooter suppliers as electrification develops.
NDC official Zhan Fang-guan said setting up battery stations can enhance power grid resilience. In case of emergency power cuts, a fully-charged e-scooter battery can supply power enough for a household of four for a few days.
