Newcastle's e-scooters have been in the city for two…

Newcastle's e-scooters have been in the city for two years, but how have they improved in that time?

I have quite often seen people whizzing around Newcastle on the orange Neuron e-scooters, and before I first stepped foot on one myself, I felt like they could grow to become an essential part of the city's public transport system - especially as they have now been extended until 2024.

The idea of a short distance ride to cut down the travel time between the bus stop and the office for example, is one that massively appeals to me. It's environmentally friendly and just a few pounds too, making it quite affordable as a means of convenience.

I was eager to see if my opinion would change after I had used one for the first time. I don't have great balance, and my only experience of scooters before this was my Super-Man themed Razor scooter that sparks would come out of the back of.

The e-scooters themselves feel quite futuristic in nature, as an automated voice tells you to make sure to wear a helmet and to drive carefully. The helmets are locked onto the e-scooter until they are released via an app which is also used to scan the QR code and start the ride.

When I stood on the e-scooter for the first time, I was pleased to find that they had a wide platform, so that I could get both of my feet next to each other and easily balance. That was my main concern before the ride so I'm glad that my fears were alleviated straight away.

I started off by having a bit of a test drive down Grey Street and I quickly got the hang of manoeuvring and keeping my balance. Grey Street is a low speed zone which the e-scooter's voice reminds you of. The one thing that is difficult to do is a full 180 degree turn, but I didn't need to do this at any point on my journey.

I decided that the Newcastle Quayside would be a great place to test out the speed of the e-scooter, with it being a long, straight path along, not to mention the amazing views. I was able to maintain the top speed of 15 mph for the majority of the trip, which felt like I would be able to travel a long distance in a short time, whilst maintaining full control.

The view from the Newcastle Quayside during a trip on an e-scooter (Chronicle Live)

I followed the cycle route all the way until The Tyne Bar, then turned around and made my way back into the city centre. The e-scooter performed fantastically well on flat land like this, and I'd be lying if I didn't say I felt quite cool when I whizzed passed people that were walking.

After this, I thought that it would be good to try the e-scooter going up hill to see how it fared, and this is where it struggled a little. In fairness, I did take it up a steep hill, the B1 600 next to Northumbria Police Station, but it failed to get over 5 mph and I had to walk it up most of the way.

I was equally curious about the parking situation which I have heard so much about. People have previously raised concerns over the e-scooters being left in roads and in the way of pedestrians. The new system for parking was clear as the map on the app helpfully points out the parking zones.

This should help the problem, as will the potential £15 fines for doing this incorrectly and not clipping the helmet back into the e-scooter. These are important steps which will hopefully lead to people using the e-scooters safely and carefully.

Overall, my experience with the Neuron e-scooters was a very positive one. I was able to get from point to point in a short amount of time and I had quite a lot of fun doing it. The rides are affordable and the e-scooters are easy to use, even for someone with my lack of hand-eye coordination.

My views on the concept were ultimately upheld by the end of my journey as, even though their could still be improvements, such as going up hill and turning slightly easier, the positives greatly outweighed the negatives, and I could see myself travelling around the city on an e-scooter again very soon. Fingers crossed that the weather will be nicer next time.

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