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Transport for London (TfL), London Councils and e-scooter operators Dott, Lime and Tier have released new data, covering June 2021 to Nov 2022, that shows the progress made during the first phase of the London rental e-scooter trial.
The main objective of the trial is to gather data to help inform future legislation and regulations.
TfL has published a factsheet which gathered data from the first 18 months of the trial. This shows that fewer than 0.01% of trips resulted in serious injury.
There have been no fatalities and 22 serious injuries reported by operators. Operators reported that during the first phase of the trial, more than 95% of trips complied with rules around parking.
Data also shows that more than the equivalent of 249 tonnes of CO2 emissions have been saved by the e-scooter trips, with 32 per cent of users combining their journey with a mode of public transport.
TfL has taken steps to ensure the safety of anyone riding rental e-scooters and other members of the public, with the rental vehicles in London having high safety standards which go beyond the national standards, including a speed limit of 12.5mph, larger wheels and lights that are always on throughout any rental.
Private e-scooters remain illegal for use on roads and cycle lanes.
Seb Dance, deputy mayor for Transport, said: “I’m pleased to mark the second anniversary of London’s hugely popular e-scooter rental trial.
“We’ve been clear that the trial must be focussed on safety and support the Mayor’s Vision Zero target to eliminate all deaths and serious injuries on London’s roads.
“The Mayor and I are determined to continue building a cleaner, greener and more prosperous London for everyone, and these rental e-scooters provide Londoners and visitors alike with a safe and sustainable travel option.”
The trial launched in June 2021 and has expanded significantly since then, with ten participating boroughs, more than 600 designated parking locations, of which in excess of 50% are in the carriageway, and more than 5,000 e-scooter vehicles now available for hire.
Since launching, more than 2.5 million journeys have been made, covering more than 6.46 million kilometres – the equivalent of travelling 161 times around the world. The average e-scooter trip duration was 17 minutes and the average distance travelled was 2.5km.
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Helen Sharp, TfL’s e-scooter trial lead, said: “E-scooters could play an important role in ensuring a green and sustainable future for London and we are delighted to be celebrating the two-year anniversary of the London rental trial.
“We’re working closely with operators, councils and people across London to build on our plans for the next phase of the trial, which will help us build on its successes so far.
“We hope Londoners and visitors can continue to benefit from the trial and we will continue to use its data to learn more about the role e-scooters could play in helping people move around London sustainably.”
TfL is working to finalise contracts for the next phase of the trial, following an open procurement process.
