How high-end cameras and algorithms are making escooters safer
UK trials
Trials of the new solution are currently underway in the UK city of Northampton, and the first phase will see local Voi staff fit scooters with the technology, so they can learn their environment.
Once this phase is complete, the technology will be integrated into Voi’s e-scooters for public use in the city.
Northampton’s e-scooter trial is part of a UK-wide government-led initiative to test the effectiveness of e-scooters in UK cities.
Last weekTransport for London (TfL) launched a competition to determine which three e-scooter firms will take part in its trial, set to launch next spring.
Ensuring safety has become a critical feature of the UK trials, with e-scooter firms introducing features likeone-second geofencingtechnology andartificial soundsto warn pedestrians.
UK motoring associationThe AAhas also teamed up with German e-scooter firmTIER Mobilityto runroad safety lessons, where e-scooter riders will be taught how to operate and park the vehicles and share the road safely with cars, pedestrians , and vulnerable users.
Micromobility safety
While the safety of e-scooters has come under heavy scrutiny in recent years,researchby the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has found they are not any more dangerous than other forms of micromobility, including bicycles and e-bikes.
Earlier this month, the Dutch government successfully piloted a safety feature designed to limit the speed of e-bikes on a four-kilometer stretch of bike lanes at Schiphol airport, Amsterdam.
Using digital technology, the motor of the e-bikes cuts out when the devices enter built-up areas.
The non-profitTownmaking Institute, which is behind the concept, is working with e-bike firms and government authorities with the expectation that the technology could be rolled out by 2022.
Discussions over the use of the technology are most advanced with the municipality of Amsterdam, but the provinces of Gelderland and North Holland are also said to have shown an interest.
The standard e-bike reaches speeds of 20-25 km/h, but faster-advanced models can reach 80 km/h.
In 2019, 65 people were killed while riding e-bikes in the Netherlands, up from 57 in 2018.
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Story byCities Today
Cities Today is the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders.Cities Today is the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders.
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