Two years on since Voi first launched its rentable e-scooters in Bristol, the scheme has proven popular with pedestrians keen to avoid the city’s hills and get from A to B quickly - but their use still remains divisive among road users. So it came as little surprise when the announcement that a new operator may take over Voi’s contract for the West of England sparked a huge response among our readers.
Hundreds of commenters on our Facebook page debated if Voi had earned the right to stay on, if a rival operator should move in instead, or if the scheme should simply be scrapped for good. More than 280,000 people have used Voi’s e-scooters in the West of England, totalling a whopping 6,000,000 journeys since the trial started.
But the West of England combined authority is looking for a potential new operator, or group of operators, to take over the e-scooter scheme on a long-term contract. Voi can still bid for the new contract and, in the event that it is unsuccessful, will continue the current e-scooters until the new contract is awarded so that there is no gap in the service.
Read more: Bristol e-scooter scheme could be taken over by new operator next year
While some commenters found the prospect of the change an inconvenience, there were many more concerned with the wider health and safety concerns surrounding electric scooters rather than who runs them. A general lack of road safety awareness among riders has been one of the main criticisms levelled at the scheme.
Responding to Bristol Live's Facebook post, Paul Sheehan wrote: "The problem is anyone can jump on a scooter just like a bike, including very young people. They have zero knowledge of the rules of the road, and that reflects the way they ride. Just this morning, I witnessed a mother pushing a pram as the lights were red, but a scooter decided not to stop and almost ran her over.”
Voi has responded to safety concerns in the past. In a statement shared with Bristol Live in June, Matthew Pencharz, Voi’s Head of Public Policy for UK and Ireland, said: “When it comes to safety, shared e-scooter schemes are strictly regulated and riding a shared e-scooter is as safe as riding a bike. Voi’s top priority is the safety of its riders, other road users and pedestrians, particularly vulnerable ones.
"We continuously educate our riders to follow the rules of the road and ride safely. Voi, which is part of the highly-regulated government e-scooters trials, works closely with its city partners to ensure this sustainable mode of transport is introduced safely and responsibly." Voi's scooters are only intended for use by riders over the age of 18 years old that hold a provisional driver's license, information which the company endeavours to verify before approving new account holders.
However, many readers recounted experiences of accidents. Sue Humphries wrote on Facebook: “I've had narrow misses on several occasions on the ring road cycle path. They come so fast out of side paths with no caution at all.” Heather Barclay agreed and claimed that scooter users were causing injuries by being “irresponsible, careless and inconsiderate.”
But others felt it was important to remember that when incidents do occur, it’s not always the rider that’s at fault. Clara Price shared her experience of witnessing a young man knocked off his scooter by an unlicensed driver. Meanwhile, Fern Colebrook pointed out that vehicles don’t need to be involved for the scooters to be dangerous, saying: “I fell off one and broke my shoulder."
While there is clearly widespread anxiety about e-scooters on the roads, plenty of people were full of praise for them, with Jody Austin Bennett emphatically declaring: “Doesn’t matter who takes over the scooters in Bristol, as long as they stay!!!” Similarly, Dudley Joseph acknowledged that despite some riders giving the scheme a bad name, he has “nothing but praise for the scooters in Bristol. They are the future of transport in cities, no doubt".
A few people were vocal in their support for Voi to win the long-term contract. Earl Angell-Stevens wrote that despite trying a few different schemes in other cities ”Voi are the nicest ones". But many people also saw the difficulties that e-scooters encounter as emblematic of Bristol’s wider public transport problems.
Fi Tsukishiro wrote: “If the buses never get cancelled or severely delayed during peak hours, then people may consider not taking scooters. Buses are highly unreliable during peak hours when people need to go back to work, and cars are constantly standing still, leaving people no choice but to take scooters.”
Agreeing with the sentiment, Aeliana Aphelion wrote, “I recall there was some alternative to individual transportation vehicles... It could take plenty of people around the city. It was called... THE BUS.” While Sean Cahill wondered which company might win the scooter contract, ”New Operator? First Bus expanding their repertoire.” Let’s hope not.
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