Jul 2, 2024
At the end of 2023, we invited Bolt users in 34 countries to submit their ideas for improving cities.
After carefully reviewing the 83,992 proposals we received, we’re exhausted but also deeply moved by the interest shown in our mission of making cities for people.
We analysed and grouped your proposals to determine what people think are the most common challenges in cities worldwide and to propose solutions.
See them below.
Bolt’s mission is to make cities for people by providing alternatives to the private car.
Cities worldwide are struggling with congestion, pollution, traffic deaths, urban sprawl, a lack of greenery, and many other problems due to decades of prioritising car infrastructure.
Cities lack space, and every new car park claims a piece of public shared land that could be a playground or a park. And every extra lane is a missed opportunity for a bike path, while more car lanes don’t even solve congestion.
But don’t take our word for it.
When we wrapped up 2023 with a traditional highlight reel, sharing the year’s most interesting statistics, we invited you to submit your ideas for improving your (or any) city.
We received 83,992 insightful ideas, revealing what urban dwellers themselves find most concerning in our cities.
Seeing the same problems across 34 countries proves our mission is more relevant than ever.
Let’s look at the most common urban issues and discuss how to tackle them.
When analysing your proposals, we noticed some patterns.
The most common problem areas you highlighted were: road quality, urban transport, environmental sustainability, and a lack of public amenities.
Here’s what cities, citizens, and businesses could do to alleviate these concerns.
Road maintenance is a city’s responsibility. Good quality roads are safe, strategically planned, and regularly repaired.
Dissatisfaction with poor road conditions is evident in the global rise of activists who’ve drawn attention to potholes or fixed them with simple means like cold asphalt.
Poor road conditions cause accidents, damage vehicles, and increase travel times. If cities kept bike lanes and walkways in good condition, people would use them more. This would, in turn, benefit drivers by reducing motorway congestion.
Clean streets are more hygienic, aesthetic, and inviting, encouraging people to walk more and enjoy their surroundings. More people on the streets means better physical and mental well-being, increased social interaction, and a greater sense of security.
Pedestrians, cyclists, and parents with pushchairs want cities to show other roads the same amount of care they do for motorways. Citizens can’t rely on walkways unless they’re always free from rubbish, standing water, and snow.
A straightforward way to reduce littering is to ensure there are enough rubbish bins. Local municipalities that lack resources to increase the cleaning frequency could use their communication channels to raise awareness and prevent further littering or collaborate with initiatives like Global Cleanup Day.
While we’re not in the road construction business, we’re doing what we can to increase road safety, including constantly creating new safety features and spreading awareness. We’re happy to help cities plan better infrastructure by sharing what we’ve learned in 500+ cities and data on the most popular routes.
Studies show that connectivity, or how easy it is to get where you want to go, is one of the most important qualities for using public transport.
People also prioritise public transport’s efficiency (frequency, reliability, and speed).
But what about the price?
It’s important, but not as vital as some politicians would like you to believe.
Take Tallinn, the capital of Bolt’s home country, Estonia. It’s had free public transport for over 10 years. The result? Car use has gone up.
If public transport doesn’t allow people to go where they want to or makes it incredibly inconvenient, even a free ride won’t encourage them to use it more. One solution would be to set affordable prices and use the money to improve the transport network.
As cities evolve (e.g., zoning laws push factories or business parks to the outskirts), public transport should adapt and connect suburbs with more destinations, not just the city centre.
In many cases, it makes sense to include shared mobility.
Studies show that the average person is willing to walk to a public transport stop for up to 5–10 minutes, or 400–800 metres.
Adding new public transport routes or extending additional ones can cost cities millions to set up and maintain. While improving public transport is crucial, it doesn’t make financial sense to cover all scarcely populated areas.
Bolt is already complementing cities’ public transport networks by filling the gaps, and can further improve connectivity in many ways.
Unfortunately, some cities have limited shared mobility’s potential with restrictions and tenders, making it less available, more expensive, and unreliable.
Lowering speed limits is one of the most efficient ways to improve road safety and increase the efficacy of other measures.
It’s a well-known fact that a pedestrian’s chance of surviving a car crash is 90% at 30 km/h or below but less than 50% at 45 km/h or more.
But speed limits don’t guarantee safety unless cities enforce them.
This includes oversight, adequate fines, and street design elements like speed bumps, sharp corners, and chicanes that force drivers to slow down.
While drivers often object to lower speed limits, citing increased congestion and travel times, studies have shown the effect is actually the opposite.
And even if speed limits slightly increased travel time, getting to your destination a few minutes sooner shouldn’t justify any deaths.
Cities like Helsinki and Oslo have proven that there’s nothing normal about the preventable 1.3 million global traffic deaths that we’ve grown numb to. These cities managed to bring traffic casualties down to zero by enforcing the above-mentioned principles.
The same principles apply to light vehicles. However, while limiting the scooter speed is one of the easiest measures for cities to enforce, protected bike lanes are the most impactful safety solution for bicycle and scooter users.
| Read more about Bolt passenger and driver safety measures and features, and explore our scooter safety rules. |
In some cities, bike lanes are a chicken-and-egg problem.
Cities claim there aren’t enough cyclists to justify the expense. Experts say there can’t be more cyclists before more bike lanes exist.
But adding just any kind of bike lanes isn’t enough. For a substantial number of people to choose cycling and other light vehicles, bike lanes must be inviting, safe, and continuous.
Cycle paths won’t be truly safe unless they’re separated from the rest of the traffic with a barrier or buffer zone.
And as with public transport, people need to be able to rely on biking to get around. If there’s no complete network of bike lanes or they’re poorly maintained, commuters won’t use them regularly.
Many cities (and drivers) don’t realise that better public transport, more bike lanes, and more pedestrians also serve drivers — the more people choose an alternative way to move, the less congestion there will be on motorways.
Recycling is another complex issue that cities should address.
Waste production (including food waste) is a serious global issue and critical for the sustainability of cities.
Improving recycling helps reduce waste sent to landfills, conserves natural resources by reusing materials, and reduces pollution and greenhouse gas emissions associated with manufacturing new products.
Cities can increase recycling by:
Local governments can further advance recycling by collaborating with businesses and communities to create a culture of sustainability.
Businesses like Bolt can help by raising awareness through joint campaigns with cities and sharing relevant information like how to reduce food waste and how to use a food caddy.
As the sustainability of cities is a topic close to our heart, we’re doing what we can to avoid adding to the problem. For example, Bolt offices don’t have waste bins by desks to reduce waste. Instead, we have multiple recycling bins on every floor.
In fact, by 2025, we aim to use 100% renewable electricity in Bolt-controlled offices, warehouses, charging docks, and Bolt Market premises. We also plan to return at least 90% of our waste to the circular economy by 2030. Bolt scooters are already up to 90% recyclable, and we can upcycle what we can’t recycle.
Our long-term environmental goal is to become a 100% carbon net zero shared mobility provider by 2040.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that each city has at least 9 square metres (ideally 50 m2) of accessible, safe, and functional green space per person.
Numerous studies show greenery can improve physical and mental health. City plants improve air quality, reduce urban heat islands, support biodiversity, and provide recreational spaces for residents.
Cities must stop sacrificing vegetation to build more roads and instead find ways to increase green areas.
There are many ways to do it:
Greenery should be a part of city planning as much as roads or lighting are. Cities that haven’t taken it seriously before should consider starting now.
| See our blog post on guerrilla gardening to make your neighbourhood a better place to live. Wondering how your town would look with fewer cars and more green and recreational areas? Try our Snapchat lens, which makes cities people-friendly. |
Public art, including murals, can enhance well-being by beautifying neighbourhoods, increasing walkability, and making people feel safer. Art can entertain, create tourism opportunities, and cultivate a sense of community.
Even cities that have a limited budget can promote the creation of public art by:
Public amenities like playgrounds, libraries, and parks are essential for citizens’ mental and physical well-being. They foster meaningful connections among the community and enhance the quality of life for residents of all ages.
For instance, public skateparks provide a space for physical activity and can bring about positive change in communities by making neighbourhoods more appealing and fostering camaraderie among young people.
Kids aged 1–5 should be active for at least 3 hours daily, and community playgrounds allow them to develop and refine their social, emotional, cognitive, and physical skills.
Playgrounds can offer additional (educational) benefits. For example, a playground designed as a mock-up of a city could teach kids how to navigate the streets safely. This miniature city at a kid’s height could be like a 3D version of our recently designed Little Big Playmat.
Urban street games are another way to create a recreational area suitable for children, teenagers, and adults.
Some street game examples include:
Chess, in particular, has proven to benefit mental health and the development of public spaces.
However, similarly to walking to public transport stops, studies suggest that residents are more than 4 times as likely to visit playgrounds if they’re less than 800 metres away. That’s why an abundance of recreational areas is indeed vital.
Repurposing a car park into a skatepark or a giant game board would also be in keeping with the growing movement of reclaiming shared public land that vehicles have occupied to be used by people.
The Guardian suggests that libraries will serve as “meeting places for the mind” in the future of urban development. Urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg classifies them as a prime example of a “third space” — public places where people can enjoy themselves and meet others in their community.
Libraries are mostly either old traditional buildings or modern architectural projects. Still, a more inclusive approach would be for cities to make a library on wheels or a smaller pop-up community library that makes access to books easier.
This is a peculiar yet buzz-worthy idea, as research conducted by the Royal Society has revealed that bees living in urban areas have a better quality of life than their rural counterparts.
Urban bee colonies are larger, better nourished, and more disease-resistant. Additionally, urban colonies have a longer lifespan when compared to those in rural areas.
Why is this important? Bees can help with cooling cities by helping more plants grow.
A mobile bee park or an urban flower farm is an easy way to inject nature into a city. Another option would be a bee-friendly bus stop like those in Utrecht.
In addition, we received many ideas for new, intriguing Bolt products and charities we could work with. Thanks for your valuable input and suggestions; we’ll keep them in mind.
We also received 3 fun ideas that may not solve the abovementioned issues but might improve life in other ways.
Thanks again for helping us create more liveable cities by participating in our campaigns and opting for shared mobility.
