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Voi’s shared e-scooters are now available in three additional German cities: Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Cologne.
In April 2020, Voi was the first sharing provider to integrate with Free Now’s MaaS platform. The operator has expanded its strategic partnership with the German mobility platform to include all three new cities; the scooters are also bookable via the Free Now app as part of the multimodal offer.
“Findings from our first two years in Germany have shown that the local market offers great potential for us,” said Claus Unterkircher, general manager DACH. “That’s why we have devised a concept that is ideal for meeting this demand in Düsseldorf, Cologne and Frankfurt.”
The key points of this approach are high availability and service area coverage, especially in outlying districts and peripheral areas. Through its new long-period subscription models (12, six and three months), Tier riders can take an unlimited number of rides for €1 per day at a flat rate.
Ideally, the nearest Voi scooter should be no more than a minute away when the app is opened, said the operator This is partly achieved by swappable batteries. “Since the scooters no longer have to be collected for charging, we can work much more efficiently and sustainably,” said Unterkircher.
A data-driven route optimisation tool was developed for the logistics behind the battery swapping and re-parking operations that minimise the fleet teams’ travel times. The software also determines where collected e-scooters – for example, those that are parked in a way that obstructs traffic – need to be deployed to be ready for the next potential customer.
“Simply putting lots of scooters in the city centre is the wrong strategy here,” said Unterkircher. “We focus on operating our fleet efficiently, making sure our e-scooters are located where they are used the most. This is a concept that has lead to Voi having the highest amount of trips per vehicle per day in Germany.”
Alexander Mönch, Free Now’s general manager, Germany and Austria, added: “With Voi, we have a strong micromobility partner at our side whose e-scooters can now also be booked via our app in Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and even Cologne. We are very pleased to announce that we have expanded the partnership and can now offer our users another sustainable service for the last mile.
“We have been present on the market in all three cities for many years. Our mobility services are used by more than one million customers. Together with Voi, we want to reach new target groups and further expand our services so that even more people can get around the cities without their own cars.”
