Amid reduced public transport services during the pandemic, a trial began for the renting of scooters with Liverpool as one of the first cities.
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00:00e-scooters and e-bikes are to remain a fixture on the city streets for at least another two years.
00:06The Liverpool Council poised to award fresh terms to keep the vehicles on the road.
00:10I'm a big fan for lots of reasons. I think, I know we've got problems, people don't like them on the streets.
00:18It's not the fault of the scooters is it, it's the fault of the people.
00:21I've not been on one of the e-scooters, I've had close encounters with a few that have got a bit close to me
00:28when they've been speeding past.
00:30Well it's good for you if you want to get around quickly and do things,
00:33but I think the speeds, you know, the limitations on the speeds should be done.
00:37Amid reduced public transport services during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020,
00:42the Department for Transport began a trial for the renting of scooters and bikes,
00:46with Liverpool as one of the first cities.
00:48The original deadline for the end of the trials was November 2021,
00:54has been extended ever since. The City Council's existing contract with Voy is due to expire on June 5th.
01:00I use them, I look ridiculous on it, but I love it.
01:02We have to take a picture and leave them in good order,
01:05but it's not necessarily the people who use them who are shifting them in the wrong place.
01:09They're rather dumped when they're not used.
01:11I know there are specific, you see them painted on the pavement, e-scooter zones, areas,
01:17where they're meant to be kept and people pick up, but you just see them sort of randomly around flashing,
01:22which doesn't look good.
01:24A fresh extension of the scheme has now been announced to May 2026,
01:28with the local authority seeking sign-off from its cabinet to keep the vehicles on the streets.
01:33The current contract with the Swedish firm was adopted when Voy adopted areas from Liverpool Council
01:38following the closure of its City Bike Scheme.
01:40A local authority cabinet report in 2022 said the size of the City Bike Scheme reduced year on year
01:46due to theft and vandalism, coupled with a lack of available funding to invest in new bikes.
01:51As a result, the scheme became what the council described as unsustainable
01:55due to the annual losses of around £300,000.
01:59It's a bit like cycle lanes, isn't it?
02:01They've taken away a lot of the road for cars, transport, and put cycle lanes in,
02:06but a lot of people don't use them.
02:08They still prefer the pavements, with pavements for pedestrians.
02:12A cabinet report said how the original trial was procured when e-scooter trials were an unknown quantity.
02:18However, e-scooters have proved more popular than expected.
02:22It's thought the current scheme brings in more than £300,000 in revenue for the City Council,
02:28making the need for a new contract a necessity given the city's financial situation.
02:33Analysis by Liverpool Council said the vehicle had proven very popular,
02:37particularly by a large number of workers, students, visitors and residents,
02:41particularly during spring and summer.
02:43Under the new scheme, it's proposed the area of operation will be expanded under the new concession contract
02:48to cover the whole area within the council's administrative boundaries.
02:52The scooters could also be made available all day long, 24-7,
02:56to support shift workers when public transport is no longer available.