Three hundred new vehicles are now available for rent to users aged 18 and over. Specialists are calling them a safer alternative to electric scooters.
Just as Moscow authorities were grappling with electric scooters, here come electric scooters. Velobike is offering 300 units for rent in a pilot mode, according to the Department of Transport.
The 35-kilogram scooter is equipped with a 250-watt electric motor. It features smart modules that limit speed to 20 kilometers per hour. In areas with heavy pedestrian traffic, the speed automatically decreases.
They can be used from the age of 18, and the rental cost is the same as the service`s electric bicycles. For example, under the 120+ minute tariff, the cost per minute is from 3.3 rubles.
To rent, as stated on the Velobike website, «special documents» are not required – just install the app. Anastasia Kim, CEO of Velobike, explains:
CEO of Velobike
The transport is equipped with smart control modules, as well as a display showing speed, charge level, and other important information for trip control. The electric scooter is light and maneuverable, weighing only 35 kilograms, and is displayed on the map in the app with a special icon. For user convenience, there are soft seats, a hook for belongings, and a spacious basket. We are doing everything possible to make urban transport even safer and more modern.
Riding on the road and carrying passengers are not allowed on the scooter. License plates on each device enable tracking traffic rule violations.
Will the vehicle be popular and safe? Alexei Smirnov, founder of consulting company InnovaTransport, speculates:
Founder of consulting company InnovaTransport
The appearance of Velobike electric scooters is a logical continuation of the development of kicksharing services in Moscow and short-term rental of various personal mobility devices. They will become a safer alternative to scooters because there is no design possibility to ride two people, and this, of course, is good news. I don`t think electric scooters will create more problems, because they will move in accordance with traffic rules and the restrictions and slow zones that have already been introduced in Moscow, as they are all connected to a single information and navigation system. As for helmets, their use on electric scooters is not mandatory, so users have a choice: they can use their own helmet or not use one, because traffic rules do not oblige its use.
Also this summer, Velobike`s Moscow rental service will introduce mechanical bicycles. They are not tied to specific stations, and as part of a pilot project, 200 units will be available for rent and can be left in any permitted zone.
