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Five operators of shared e-scooters and e-bikes have published 10 recommendations for cities to better integrate shared micromobility vehicles onto its streets.
Global operators Dott, Lime, Superpedestrian, Tier Mobility, and Voi have collaborated to create the framework, reflecting the expertise gained from many years of experience.
Together, the five companies operate more than 750,000 vehicles across 37 countries.
In order to help cities succeed with lowering air pollution and providing an alternative to cars and a complement to public transport, the operators put forward ten recommendations across two main themes: defining the best environment the service should function in and highlighting the best way to regulate programmes to be financially sustainable over the long term.
The companies make recommendations on fleet sizes and vendor contract length, tying these factors to greater reliability for frequent riders, such as those who use the services for commutes to work or university.
The recommendations suggest the addition of new vehicles to city streets should be directly tied to the operators’ performance keeping city streets tidy and well-maintained.
The framework makes more technical suggestions on data sharing protocols, vendor fees, and vendor selection protocols, encouraging cities to consider reliability, safety, sustainability, and fleet management as the top selection criteria.
Once vendors are selected to serve the city, the recommendations suggest operating areas contiguous with city boundaries where possible, speeds between 20-25km/h and ample parking.
Finally, the operators advice to continuously improve rider experience to ensure people shift to sustainable, shared and zero-carbon emission transportation for good.
Among the recommendations focused on rider experience, it includes contract terms long enough for riders to become familiar with a brand’s service and rely on it, neighbouring coverage areas so riders are not stopped mid-journey, and practical parking schemes which allow riders to park at their destination.
What will matter, according to the industry group, is that cities read, consider, and ultimately implement the recommendations put forward by the companies.
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Henri Moissinac, CEO of Dott, Wayne Ting, CEO of Lime, Assaf Biderman, CEO of Superpedestrian, Lawrence Leuschner, CEO of Tier Mobility, and Fredrik Hjelm, CEO of Voi, released a joint statement following the release.
It reads: “In pretty short time, the micromobility industry experienced huge growth, providing the strongest challenge yet to personal car use in cities.
“To ensure ongoing sustainability and global consistency, we combined our expertise to develop recommendations to cities that we believe are best-practices for regulating micromobility programmes.
“ThisWe have created a strong framework that has the potential to greatly improve the micromobility experience for riders and non-riders alike, allowing cities to experience the best of what our services provide.
“We came together to issue these recommendations. Now that we’ve demonstrated what conditions lead to sustainable services, we’re looking forward to working with city authorities to put these recommendations into action.”
