~400.000 electric cars will be produced in the world in 2014, to be compared with the stock of 150 millions of electric two wheeler globally. When you come back from China the question is more : why do we see so few electric two wheelers in US/Europe ?
I think the answer to that question, at least in the U.S., is that the population here is not interested in using two-wheel vehicles for transportation, commuting or utility purposes, like the Chinese and most third-world countries do. We have too much disposable income and too much junk to haul around for no good reason. Hence the huge popularity of pickup trucks in the U.S. When I walk around my neighborhood, if anyone has their two-car garage doors open, almost all of the garages are filled up with boxes and junk that was bought and then never used, while the owner's six cars are parked in the driveway and along the street curb (which is why the street sweepers can never sweep near the curb and gutter). In a society like this, motorcycles are ridden on the weekend and vacations for fun, while cars and trucks are used for everything else. So there is a limited market for motorcycles and everyone is looking for the latest trend to purchase and polish.
While the practical scooter is only bought in congested urban areas where parking a car or pickup is almost impossible and driving one around the city is a major challenge. Finally, you have to travel relatively long distances in America to get anywhere and that requires that high speeds be maintained for many miles. Not the sort of thing that Chinese or European-designed electric motorcycles and scooters are good at (at least not at this time). They are designed for a different customer riding in a different environment.
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Topic: Forbes on electric motorcycles (Read 839 times)