Peter Evans Partnership | Trialing a long term future for e-scooters in the UK starting in Bristol
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e-scooters in Bristol
27th January 2021 In Latest News

Trialing a long term future for e-scooters in the UK starting in Bristol

Here in Bristol and in another 50+ council areas and regional authorities across the UK, e-scooter pilots are either being planned or are actively operating.

As of today, the West of England, where PEP is based, is to become the first region in the UK to offer Voi e-scooters for long-term rental.

Currently the hire scheme is limited to specific areas of Bristol and Bath. However the long-term rental pilot will allow people to rent a scooter and take it home. And the service will be available across the West of England Combined Authority (WECA) area which encompasses Bristol, Bath & North East Somerset and South Gloucestershire.

Scooters to be rented for one or six months or until the trial ends in late October

It costs £35 to rent the scooter for one month, with lower rates available for a longer rental period. To be eligible for a long-term rental scooter, users need to be over 18 years old. They must also have a valid or provisional driving licence and live in the WECA region.

Once the user has been approved, Voi delivers the scooter, helmet, a lock and two battery chargers.

Elsewhere in the UK a number of other companies are putting their hats in the ring. We’re aware of TIER, Spin, Beryl, Bird, Wind, Lime, Zipp Mobility and ZWINGS, although that may be more. There’s plenty of jockeying for the best position, going on.

We intend to keep tabs on the pilots around the country and the local councils’ reaction to them – after all they need to approve them. There’s certainly a long way to go yet to assess whether e-scooters will be appearing in Travel Plans. There are lots of unanswered questions, starting with the safety of riders, pedestrians and other road users.

Transport Minister Rachel Maclean believes that e-scooters have the potential to “provide another green alternative to get around and allow for social distancing.”

Will they be a significant part of local transport in years to come? Let’s see what happens.

Would you like to discuss a Travel Plan?

The team at PEP is very experienced in the completion of Travel Plans. Our work ranges from promoting current travel options, umbrella or framework Travel Plans to developing and managing full Travel Plans. Call us on 0117 973 4355 or email: mail@pep-bristol.co.uk

 

Photo credit: Pixabay.com