It has been reported that the Royal Family has joined the e-revolution, with Prince William buying an e-scooter to ride around the Windsor estate. As always, we take these stories with a pinch of salt, but isn’t it fun to imagine that the first in line for the throne is whizzing around Windsor on an e-scooter?
It’s worth pointing out that because of his living circumstances, Prince William is among the few in the UK who have the room and space to justify and legally use an e-scooter as they are still illegal to use on public roads outside of government-approved trials. If you want to find out more about the legal status of e-scooters, here's our guide to e-scooters and the law.
If we also had a massive estate to call home, we’d probably be interested in trialling something like an e-scooter – as long as we remembered to get the butlers to put it on charge.
Commenting on the purchase, a source told the Sun: “It just makes sense. He whizzes up to the castle when he needs to see the King.”
They continued: “It’s a two or three-mile round trip from his family home at Adelaide Cottage to Windsor Castle so it’s easier by scooter than car or walking."
Unfortunately, we’re without details to nerd-out over regarding Wills’ choice of make and model, but if you want to get a sense of what's available, here's our current guide to the best e-scooters.
> RAF buys 90 e-scooters to get pilots to work
It was announced last year that a new Transport Bill will make e-scooters legal in the UK through the creation of a low-speed, zero-emission vehicle category, but this has been pushed back until late this year at the earliest.
Last month the chief executive of trade association TechUK said that the ongoing legislative uncertainty was proving an existential risk to e-scooter firms. Julian David warned that delays to legislation are preventing manufacturers and operators from expanding in the UK and could even see them leave the market altogether.