An Electric scooter trial will be extended in Gloucester and Cheltenham following a positive response.
Following the introduction of the authorised rental e-scooters across Cheltenham and Gloucester, Zwings’ service has proved a great success integrating into the local transport mix. Zwings Gloucestershire riders have covered the equivalent cumulative distance to travelling from Gloucester Cathedral to well beyond the moon.
If the rides had been made one after the other, Gloucestershire e-scooters would have been running continuously from when they arrived on-street until 2026! Given user feedback on modal shift, this represents an equivalent reduction of roughly 20 tonnes of CO2.
Last Autumn, Zwings offered Gloucestershire residents and visitors the first opportunity to legally travel on electric scooters in urban space, as part of the nationwide trials launched by the Department for Transport. Since then, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive after having welcomed almost 50,000 unique riders to use Zwings e-scooters.
Cllr David Gray, the cabinet member for environment and transport at Gloucestershire County Council, said: “E-scooters are an exciting part of the future of green travel and I am pleased to hear the trial is being renewed. Gloucestershire is fighting hard to tackle climate change and improve air quality for our residents and e-scooters are part of that effort, offering clean and inexpensive travel, especially for younger people. The trial is an opportunity to try out operating models for the scooters, including extra safety measures, helping to ensure that everyone can get around our towns and cities safely.”
According to a recent survey, 94% of riders were in favour of Zwings rental e-scooters being made a longer-term part of Gloucestershire’s transport infrastructure. 92% of respondents considered.
Joe Lewin, CEO of Zwings, commented: “I would like to first start by thanking our partners at the county and local councils for their forward thinking stance on transportation in welcoming Zwings e-scooter sharing service to their community. Clearly, the high usage of Zwings’ authorised rental vehicles is an indicator of an exciting future with e-scooters becoming part of everyday life. Therefore, the trials have proven that rider education, rule enforcement, the development of infrastructure, and responsible e-scooter usage will allow this increasingly popular mode of travel to gradually integrate into Britain’s transport mix.
It is great to see our e-scooters being increasingly used for practical trips that directly replace cars. This has been stimulated through various campaigns and initiatives such as the Zwings ‘Ride Pass’ subscription. Our service is used by all ages and backgrounds too. Our most active rider has used our scooters for as many as 336 journeys this past year. We are looking forward to continuing to work closely with Gloucestershire County Council into 2022 following the announcement of the extension to the scheme”.