Bolt shared E-Scooter scheme | Wexford County Council

The first shared e-Scooter scheme in Ireland has been launched on the 15th of August by Minister James Lawless.
Wexford County Council, working with Bolt, Europe’s largest scooter operator is trialling another shared sustainable transport mode, building on the success of the shared bike scheme.
62 percent of people say E-Scooters will help them connect to existing public transport links, while 59 percent say the introduction of E-Scooters would make them use their car less, according to Bolt research.
This pilot launch of E-Scooters in Wexford Town for an initial trial period of 6 months will provide additional mobility choices for citizens of and visitors to Wexford Town.
Over 50 E-Scooters are now on Wexford streets, in addition to Bolt’s existing e-bikes. In total, Bolt will now be providing 100 shared electric vehicles to users in Wexford town.

Bolt already operates e-bike schemes in Wexford, Bray, Kilkenny, Carlow, Sligo, Portlaoise and Dun Laoghaire, and ride-hailing across Ireland.

Launching the scheme, James Lawless, Minister of State at the Department of Transport, said: “Since regulations were passed in May, providers can now work with local authorities to provide shared e-scooters that are compliant with regulations and adhere to best practice safety standards. These kinds of ‘micromobility’ schemes offer the public a range of sustainable transport choices, which is a vital contribution to the decarbonisation of transport emissions.

My department has recently published an advice note for local authorities to help them bring shared micromobility services to their own areas. We want a best practice approach to safety, planned infrastructure and the local environment, operations and monitoring. All of this will ensure that shared e-scooters are introduced in a safe and regulated manner. I warmly congratulate Wexford County Council on this initiative.”

Minister of State at the Department of Transport, James Lawless and Cathaoirleach of Wexford County Council, Pip Breen at the launch of the eScooter trialon the 15th of August

In a survey conducted by Bolt, 62 percent of people in the South East said that they think e-scooters will help them connect to existing public transport links, while 59 percent said the introduction of e-scooters would make them use their car less.

According to Bolt’s survey, 57 percent of people think that e-scooters will help them visit local businesses more frequently.

Bolt will operate a regulation-compliant scooter model that is easy to manoeuvre, and has an exceptionally long range of 40km, enabling people to move around safely and sustainably. The scooters have an electronic speed limit of 20 km/h, to prevent speeding, even when going downhill. Additional safety features include requiring users to register their details, and built-in GPS tracking. To be able to ride a Bolt scooter, users will need to be registered on the Bolt platform and be at least 18 years of age.

There will also be cognitive reaction tests to ensure sober riding, along with a tandem riding prevention system to stop people from riding with an additional passenger. Bolt will ensure its scooters are parked responsibly through the use of mandatory parking locations across Wexford town as is currently in place for the shared e-bike scheme.

For further information

The e-scooters comply with the definition of Powered Personal Transporters as per the Road Traffic and Roads Act 2023 and the requirements laid out in the Road Traffic (Electric Scooters) Regulations 2024 gov - E-Scooters (www.gov.ie)

In a survey of 500 people across the island of Ireland, conducted by Bolt.
Referenced safety features include:
1. Sobriety reaction test - Bolt has developed a cognitive test in the form of a challenge on the mobile app that measures the reaction time of user responses and detects substance impairment. This can be activated for users in a given town or city at night (eg. between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.). If the user fails the test, they will be advised to use another mode of transport and denied access to the bike. Bolt has been using this solution in cities in Europe since September 2021 and within Ireland since June 2022. In July across our Irish e-bike markets, 15.2% of potential orders were lost during the above hours due to users failing the test, with results peaking during the weekends. This results in users being prevented from taking a trip whilst under the influence of an intoxicant, and they are directed to take an alternative mode of transport such as a taxi, bus, or walk.
2. Tandem riding prevention system - Bolt’s patent-pending Tandem Riding Detection feature uses our e-scooters’ three-axis accelerometer sensors to detect sudden incremental changes in mass which indicate multiple people boarding a single scooter. When tandem riding is detected, users are notified and given a warning. If the behaviour is repeated, the user is temporarily blocked from the platform and then permanently blocked.
3. Beginner Mode - this automatically reduces vehicle acceleration and speed to a maximum of 15 km/h, when the user has selected Beginner mode. This ensures that beginners feel comfortable and safe while handling the vehicles. Research has shown that where accidents occur, it is most often during users' first experiences with a new mode. By allowing users to easily take control of the e-scooter, Bolt helps to limit the risk of accidents.
4. Geofenced Speed Zones. All e-bikes and e-scooters are equipped with an IoT (Internet of Things) device which has an internal sim card (to allow communication between a customer's phone and a Bolt e-bike/ e-scooter) and a GPS (to allow for regular location updates of the vehicles) which is used to adjust the max speed of the bike/scooter when it enters a speed restriction zone.
  
  Bolt has the ability to limit the assisted speed of the eBikes ordinarily at 25 km/h, and the eScooters ordinarily at 20 Km/h, in the operational area, but can be further reduced to any speed, for example, 15 km/h in congested areas or 8 km/h areas where bikes/scooters and pedestrians interact. The maximum assisted speed can be configured at any time according to the instructions communicated by the council, and speeds can be amended if necessary during the period of this scheme, either temporarily for specific events or seasons, or permanently, in consultation with the council.