'They get pretty hairy to ride': privately purchased e-scooters have imbed codes where the 25km/h limit can be over-ridden

This is the reality of battery-powered transport; a world where a plain-looking Tesla Model S Plaid can out-sprint a $500,000 Lamborghini, and innocuous electric transport like e-scooters have hidden - but range-limited - performance capabilities that would confound regulators - if only they knew.

The fastest production scooter in the world - for now, at least - is the US-built carbon-fibre and alloy Rion RE90 Racing Edition - the so-called "Bugatti of electric scooters" - which tops out around 120km/h, according to independent tests. It has slick tyres like a racing motorcycle and weighs 27.2kg.

In the ACT, police have reminded the public that regardless of the battery capacity and output of their e-scooter, top speeds are limited to 25km/h on level ground and at no more than 15km/h on a footpath.

But the ability of an e-scooter to far exceed that performance restriction - on a tiny machine light enough to carry around - was amply demonstrated when a man faced court this week detected doing 94km/h on his-e-scooter on the Majura Parkway late last year.

James Cole, 38, faced multiple charges including failing to stop for police, driving with a prescribed drug in his oral fluid, and driving in a bike lane.

Cole, who had methamphetamine in his system at the time, first captured the attention of police driving north on the Majura Parkway in north Canberra at a top speed of 94km/h in a crouching position.

Police said they encouraged "all e-scooter riders to obey the rules, wear a helmet and consider their own safety and the safety of other road and path users".

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E-scooters are not permitted on roads or on-road bicycle lanes, except on residential streets where there is no footpath.

There are no capped battery power outputs for e-scooters, which under ACT legislation are grouped in the same "personal mobility device" category as a motorised skateboard and a "segway-like device".

Scooters with well over 1000 watts of power - which technically can generate speeds well in excess of 50km/h - can be purchased online for as little as $700 and assembled at home with a few tools. No registration is required.

But curiously, motor-assisted e-bikes, known as pedalecs, have a power restriction. They are restricted to a maximum output at the rear wheel of 250 watts when used on public roads, according to Access Canberra. Owning a pedalec within this category does not require registration.

The directorate defined a pedalec as "a type of electric bicycle where the rider's pedalling is assisted by a small electric motor".

"They have a maximum of 250 watts continuous rated power and must be pedalled to gain power assistance, have a maximum powered speed of 25km/h and may have a 6km/h 'twist and go' capability without pedalling, to assist in propelling the vehicle forwards."

However, the case of the Canberra man rolling down the Majura Parkway at the same speed as the cars around him on an unregistered e-scooter has exposed the ease at which governors and inputs such as wheel sensors can be reprogrammed or circumvented to generate high speeds.

On private roads, battery-electric machines - e-scooters or e-bikes - can be dialled up to whatever top speed the rider prefers and the machine has the capability to produce.

A private Canberra electric bike builder, who did not want to be identified, said the ease with which the speed-governing systems on e-scooters and e-bikes can be circumvented would surprise many.

But he also pointed out that the 250-watt capped e-bike output was "about right" for generating 25km/h on flat ground.

"Most people would feel reasonably comfortable with a 25 km/h top speed in normal suburban situations; once you start to go faster than that, it starts to become pretty obvious to everyone around," he said.

"With their upright handlebars and small wheels, most e-scooters just aren't designed for high speed. They get pretty hairy to ride.

"However, it doesn't matter whether you ride an e-scooter or an e-bike, provided sufficient power is available from the battery pack, it is a fairly simple process to tweak it to go faster. Often you can buy a dongle online from overseas and plug it straight in."

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