And carmakers are getting in on the act, with Honda, BMW, Peugeot and VW all showing e-scooter concepts recently, and Daimler promising to have a production one in 2014 on the lines of the smart concept above.
As it is, US motorists' interest in ordinary gasoline powered scooters has already shown a buying spike, with almost 9 percent more of the diminitive vehicles sold in the first quarter of this year compared to last year.
But any major increase in the use of ordinary scooters poses a pollution problem. According to the US EPA, a scooter will produce as much hydrocarbon emissions in 10 miles as will a car driven 850 miles.
The e-scooter is the answer, and one already proven in the world's most populous country. There are an estimated 120 million electric bikes and scooters in daily use in China.
