New firm to expand and rebrand Bristol's Voi e-scooter scheme
A new operator will take over Bristol's e-scooter trial this autumn.
The West of England Combined Authority has announced today (30 June) that a contracted has been awarded to German company Tier.
Companies were asked to bid for a long-term contract in the city last year.
Tier will take over from Voi which has operated the scheme since it began in 2020.
It will now run the Bristol e-scooter trial – and will be fined if parking problems continue.
The fleet of 4,000 e-scooters will be branded "WESTscoot" and will change from coral to green.
1,500 new pedal-only e-bicycles and 20 e-cargo bikes for local businesses will be added.
Metro mayor Dan Norris has said the contract with Tier would bring in an estimated £9.7million to the Weca region – Bristol, South Gloucestershire and Bath & North East Somerset – over four years.
The money is set to be used for public transport.
Mr Norris added that clauses in the contract would address parking concerns and that 100 new e-scooter parking racks would be provided.
The Labour mayor said: “WESTscoot must build on the successes of e-scooters in our West of England region which has been one of the most successful trials anywhere in Europe.
“But it must also address the legitimate concerns residents often voice over poor and irresponsible e-scooter parking.
“Given our very ambitious West of England net-zero 2030 target, it is vital that these bright green electric WESTscoot, WESTbike and WESTcargo e-vehicles become a common and welcome sight across our region, for they are an important means to allow residents to reduce car use or give it up completely if they should so choose.”
”They also include stricter requirements to keep vehicles parked tidily within designated bays and agreed numbers."
Voi UK, Ireland and France general manager Jack Samler said: “We have worked tremendously hard over the last three years to make the West of England e-scooter trial the most successful in the country – and one of the largest in Europe.
“We are very proud of what we’ve achieved in Bristol and Bath and the legacy we’ve built. It is disappointing to be leaving these cities."
Tier’s Northern Europe vice-president Fred Jones said: “I believe with WESTscoot, the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority is setting out an important example of how shared electric personal vehicles and existing public transport options can work together to reduce carbon emissions and congestion in our urban centres.
“The expansion of the service to include e-bikes and e-cargo bikes makes it easier for the people of the West of England to choose to leave their car at home and pick the perfect vehicle for their journey.
“We are proud to have been selected as the operator for this UK-leading flagship service and look forward to the full launch this autumn.”