2022: A Good Year for Electric Two-Wheel Vehicle Sales

In a stagnant motorized two-wheeler market, electric scooters and motorcycles saw their sales increase by 51.8% last year.

50,992: this is precisely the number of registered electric scooters and motorcycles last year in France. This figure, encompassing both new and used markets, has grown by 51.8%. According to AAA Data, which created the bar chart with insurer Solly Azar, this market is “primarily driven by private individuals (+71.1%) and mainly led by scooters”.

If the development of supply probably contributes to this positive trend, it is mainly the implementation of unfavorable rules for thermal vehicles that fuels the growth in sales. The multiplication of ZFE and even more the introduction of paid parking in Paris for thermal two-wheelers have likely encouraged many city dwellers to turn to electric.

A tougher year for thermal two-wheelers

For scooters and motorcycles with thermal engines, 2022 ended on a less positive note. Their sales declined by 7% in the new market (290,010 units), and by 5% in the used market (903,798 units). This negative trend is attributed to inflation, which supposedly led to a decrease in “pleasure” purchases. The semiconductor crisis and the lack of availability of new vehicles resulting from it also explain this phenomenon.

“2022 was tumultuous, and new dynamics are at play in the two-wheelers market, notably illustrated by the implementation of ZFEs and production tensions”, explained Marie-Laure Nivot, Market Intelligence Manager at AAA Data. The bottlenecks experienced by the new vehicle market should stabilize in 2023. The gradual electrification of the cycling/motorcycle fleet, unsurprisingly, will accelerate in the coming year.”

Read also: Price, range, charging: how to choose your electric two-wheeler?