Photo: Link.city
Until this summer, e-scooters were not legal in the UK, despite the fact that you could see them practically everywhere. In an attempt to keep them from crowding already crowded urban spaces, like it happened in many countries, authorities here refused to legalize them.
Right up to July this year, you could only ride an electric standing scooter on private property or risk a fine or points off your driver’s license. Against public backlash and with the goal of helping with first- and last-mile issues, the government approved limited legislation of e-scooters.
As of this moment, you can ride one such two-wheeler in the UK on dedicated bike paths and on low-speed roads and, as before, on private land – at speeds no higher than 15.5 mph (25 kph). In order to keep the e-scooters in these areas, authorities are looking to U.S.-based Link for help, thanks to their electric scooter that turns itself off the second you go out of allowed zones, The Telegraph reports.
Current e-scooters use geofencing to turn themselves off too, but the response time is of about 30 seconds. Link’s are faster: one second after you mount a pavement, come off a road or cycle lane, or into a pedestrian area, they instantly turn off. They only need one second to deactivate and that second is used to offer the rider a warning of what’s about to happen.
According to the publication, bringing the Link e-scooters to the UK is meant to curb antisocial behavior involving e-scooters, while keeping the rider’s safety in mind. For the time being, only ride-share e-scooters are legal for use in the aforementioned areas, since they represent a sure way for authorities to check and determine whether they’re in compliance with safety standards.
Link will be renting the e-scooters through two schemes, one in London and one in Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight.
As of this moment, you can ride one such two-wheeler in the UK on dedicated bike paths and on low-speed roads and, as before, on private land – at speeds no higher than 15.5 mph (25 kph). In order to keep the e-scooters in these areas, authorities are looking to U.S.-based Link for help, thanks to their electric scooter that turns itself off the second you go out of allowed zones, The Telegraph reports.
Current e-scooters use geofencing to turn themselves off too, but the response time is of about 30 seconds. Link’s are faster: one second after you mount a pavement, come off a road or cycle lane, or into a pedestrian area, they instantly turn off. They only need one second to deactivate and that second is used to offer the rider a warning of what’s about to happen.
According to the publication, bringing the Link e-scooters to the UK is meant to curb antisocial behavior involving e-scooters, while keeping the rider’s safety in mind. For the time being, only ride-share e-scooters are legal for use in the aforementioned areas, since they represent a sure way for authorities to check and determine whether they’re in compliance with safety standards.
Link will be renting the e-scooters through two schemes, one in London and one in Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight.
Google News