12 Nov 2020
Bolt is on the path to becoming the largest micromobility operator in Europe within the next 12 months!
Already the leading European urban mobility platform, Bolt will bring e-scooters to more than 100 cities across the continent in 2021. These cities will be serviced by our expanded fleet of electric scooters, most of which will be our highly-sustainable, modular, custom-made model that is designed, sourced, built and deployed by Bolt.
This year, we’ve already expanded our scooter operations to 45 cities in 15 countries, including Sweden, Norway, and Portugal. And with 130,000 e-scooters and e-bikes on the streets in 2021, Bolt will officially become the largest micromobility provider in Europe.
“Our cities are suffering from traffic, emissions and lack of public space caused by parking. We believe that the future of urban transport is a network of on-demand services — ride-hailing, electric scooters, bikes and other light vehicles. The days where every person needs to buy a car are over.
We’ve seen that one of the biggest bottlenecks in the transition to shared electric mobility is pricing, which is why we’re excited to bring affordable scooters and electric bikes to even more countries across Europe next season, including Germany and the UK. Bolt is the largest European ride-hailing network, which enables us to offer the best prices to customers thanks to shared costs between the businesses.”
Markus Villig
CEO and co-founder
Bolt
Across the globe, cities are waking up to the inefficiencies of private vehicle ownership. Whether it’s lost time in traffic, increased emissions, or cars sitting idle, a private car is an inefficient way to transport a person around a city on a daily basis. This is particularly the case for shorter, or last-mile trips.
In our recent survey of UK Bolt riders, half of the surveyed users said they’d choose a Bolt Scooter over a private-hire vehicle (PHV) for journeys under 5 km. There’s a clear appetite for micromobility services which in this case would save 6.5 million KG of CO2 emissions per year.
As we bring sustainable micromobility to new cities, we appreciate that we’ll need to educate new riders on the ins and outs of e-scooting. That’s why we introduced our Safety Toolkit which includes a Beginner Mode, ride tips, safety instructions and guidance on local laws.
We’re also working closely with city authorities to encourage responsible parking. It’s important that Bolt e-scooters work for all members of the community (not just riders). We’ll continue to provide parking and road safety education as we bring the benefits of low-emission rides to the rest of Europe. Here’s what Bolt’s UK Country Manager Matthew Barrie had to say on the topic of micromobility and working with city authorities in the UK & Ireland:
“Bolt is supporting national and local legislators as the necessary steps are made towards full legalisation of electric scooters in the UK and Ireland. Bolt’s unique multi-modal customer proposition will unlock tremendous value in providing urban citizens with the appropriate sustainable transportation options, to quickly, safely and affordably move around their city.”
By rolling out e-scooters to 100+ European cities, we’re continuing our mission to tackle some of society’s greatest challenges. Urban environments across the world are experiencing congestion, transport inequality and high CO2 emissions, which all negatively impact quality of life.
Bolt e-scooters offer a sustainable alternative to privately owned vehicles. And by providing e-scooters at affordable prices, we’re making these vehicles accessible to everyone, driving a shift to low-emission micromobility.
As part of our role in transforming urban transport, we’re committed to having climate positive e-scooter operations by the end of 2020. This means that the green projects that we support help to remove more carbon from the atmosphere than the production, usage, and maintenance of our e-scooters adds to it.
At the heart of our e-scooter sustainability pledge is the Bolt e-scooter itself. Here are just some of the ways our e-scooters are designed, produced and serviced with sustainability in mind:
Our e-scooter operations are underpinned by our company-wide Green Plan, which aims to offset CO2 emissions, create greener cities and reduce our ecological footprint.
Although Bolt e-scooters aren’t available in the UK just yet, we’re laying the groundwork to have them ready. Download the Bolt app today and be one of the first to know when they arrive in select UK cities.
