Bolt has become the first micromobilty operator to introduce distance-based pricing to encourage safe e-scooter riding.
The micromobility industry has previously charged riders per minute to rent shared e-scooters. However, this standard can encourage riders to get to their destinations as quickly as possible, which can lead to speeding and other irresponsible behaviours such as jumping traffic lights.
Comparatively, distance-based pricing aims to ensure users focus on riding safely.
Bolt will initially roll out this new pricing scheme in Brussels, Belgium later this year.
“Charging riders of mobility services based on distance rather than time is an important step to prioritise safety over speed because it eliminates the financial incentive for people to use transport in risky or dangerous ways, to reach their destinations as quickly as possible. By testing a distance-based pricing system, Bolt can improve our understanding of how an improved incentive structure can positively impact road safety outcomes.”
This scheme follows Bolt’s recent move to hire an independent Micromobility Safety Committee to provide analysis and recommendations on its operations. The Comittee consists of six mobility expects:
- María Seguí-Gómez, former Director General for Traffic at the Spanish Interior Ministry
- Kurt Bodewig, Deputy Chair of the Committee, President of Deutsche Verkehrswacht and former German Minister for Transport, Building, and Urban Development
- Karin Hassner, Transportation planner and road safety expert at WSP
- Adam Jędrzejewski, Founder and CEO of the Mobile City Association in Poland
- Chantelle Smith, National Access and Mobility Manager at the National Council for the Blind of Ireland
- George Yannis, Professor in Traffic and Safety Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens
Alongside launching distance-based pricing, the Committee has advised Bolt to collect additional data on the impact of micromobility on vulnerable groups, such as visually impaired people. This will help the operator better understand the potential risks and develop effective solutions.
As shared e-scooters and e-bikes are still relatively new modes of transport, the Committee has also recommended that Bolt aligns its data collection methods and definitions of what constitutes an accident more closely with other transport types. This will help provide a better understanding of how micromobility can be safely implemented.
“Scooter and e-bike safety is our top priority and we take the recommendations from our experts on the Bolt Micromobility Safety Committee very seriously. We have already committed to launching distance-based pricing in Brussels later this year. The Committee also is the next step of our Micromobility Safety Pledge, published this year, which committed to build new partnerships and utilise operational data more to ensure that both our customers and other road users are safe.”
