About Neuron Mobility

Neuron Mobility is a micromobility operator providing shared electric scooter services in cities around the world. In 2022, Neuron partnered with Cascade to undertake a comprehensive life cycle assessment (LCA) of its N3 e-scooter, a commercial-grade vehicle purpose-built for the shared mobility market.

The project was commissioned in response to growing stakeholder demand for transparent environmental data, including requirements from local authorities evaluating the environmental performance of shared transport schemes. Alongside establishing a baseline product carbon footprint, Neuron also wanted to quantify the benefits of a number of operational improvements already implemented across its scooter network.

The assessment expressed results using a declared unit of grams of CO₂ equivalent per passenger kilometre travelled, enabling the scooter’s environmental performance to be assessed alongside other transport modes.

The Challenge

For Neuron, recent changes to fleet management and charging operations had altered the environmental profile of the N3 scooter, and the company wanted to understand and quantify the impact of these improvements.

Historically, batteries were charged using conventional grid electricity and operational vehicles relied on fossil fuels. Neuron had since transitioned key aspects of its operations, including the use of renewable electricity sources for battery charging and electric vehicles for battery swapping and fleet servicing.

The challenge was therefore twofold:

• Establish a robust baseline carbon footprint for the N3 scooter across its full lifecycle
• Demonstrate the environmental benefits achieved through operational improvements already implemented by Neuron

A Bespoke Consultancy-Led Approach

Cascade worked closely with Neuron to map the complete system boundary of the N3 scooter and understand how the product was deployed and managed in real-world operating conditions.

As well as calculating embodied impacts of the scooter itself, the assessment incorporated detailed operational data covering charging infrastructure, maintenance activities, replacement components and fleet management practices.

This approach ensured the final assessment reflected the true environmental performance of the N3 scooter across its entire life cycle. 

Modelling operational improvement scenarios 

To quantify the benefits of Neuron’s sustainability initiatives, Cascade developed a series of comparative life cycle scenarios.

Alongside the baseline assessment representing Neuron’s extant operating model, an alternative scenario was created to represent historical operating conditions using conventional grid electricity and fossil fuel-powered service vehicles.

This comparative modelling enabled the environmental impact of individual operational changes to be isolated and quantified.

The assessment also explored future improvement opportunities, including the potential introduction of recycled aluminium content in scooter design and benefits and loads from scooter recycling at end-of-life. 

By modelling both current and future scenarios, Neuron gained a clearer understanding of where environmental impacts occurred across the product lifecycle and which interventions offered the greatest opportunities for further carbon reduction.

The Outcome

The completed LCA provided Neuron Mobility with independently verified environmental data for its N3 e-scooter, helping satisfy stakeholder requirements and supporting engagement with local authorities evaluating shared transport solutions.

The assessment demonstrated that operational improvements, including the adoption of renewable electricity and electric service vehicles, had delivered substantial reductions in lifecycle emissions compared with previous operating practices.

In addition to establishing a robust carbon footprint baseline, the project provided Neuron with a framework for evaluating future product and operational improvements. This work later informed a follow-up assessment of the next-generation N4 scooter, allowing environmental performance to continue being monitored and improved as the product evolved.

If you need an LCA or EPD but aren’t sure where to start, or don’t have time to manage the process, we can help with that.

We typically work with:

• Construction product manufacturers
• Materials and component suppliers
• Companies responding to tenders or sustainability requirements
• Teams needing support with Life Cycle Assessment
• Suppliers needing EPDs for project specifications
• Companies targeting schemes like BREEAM
• Companies seeking to develop in-house EPD capabilities
• Companies who have faced challenges with EPD software

If you’ve been asked for an EPD, or know you’ll need one soon, Cascade ensures it gets done properly.

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