Celebrate one year of Voi in Cheltenham and Gloucester with free rides
Voi e-scooters outside Gloucester Cathedral Credit: Voi
One year on since Voi started operating in Cheltenham and Gloucester, the company has revealed that carbon savings from people riding its e-scooters is the equivalent of over four million smartphone charges.
Voi’s coral-coloured rental e-scooters first appeared in Cheltenham and Gloucester on 1 August 2023, as part of the Gloucestershire County Council e-scooter trial.
Since then nearly 19,000 people have signed up to ride Voi e-scooters, with three quarters of them riding in Cheltenham.
To celebrate the anniversary, Voi is giving away free rides to 50 new riders.
People in Cheltenham have taken nearly 170,000 rides, while rides in Gloucester are approaching 50,000, covering a distance of over 250,000 miles in total.
According to Voi’s externally-validated carbon calculator, trips on the company’s e-scooters in Cheltenham and Gloucester have replaced an estimated 85,000 short car journeys.
The use of e-scooters instead of cars in Cheltenham and Gloucester has saved Gloucestershire from nearly 40 tonnes of harmful carbon dioxide emissions - the equivalent of over four million smart phone charges.
Data from the most recent Voi rider survey in Gloucestershire reveals that a third of riders used Voi for their commute to work or education, with 39% using them to travel to and from social engagements and 14% using them for errands and shopping.
A total of 34% of riders in Cheltenham and Gloucester said they used an e-scooter instead of a car or taxi.
In the last 12 months, Voi has lowered the age restriction for riders to anyone over the age of 16 with a provisional driving licence.
James Bolton, general manager for Voi UK, said: “We’re proud to be providing people in Cheltenham and Gloucester with a safe, affordable and sustainable way of travelling, which is already making a difference to congestion and air quality in both locations.
“We hope that more people will try out our e-scooters and celebrate our one-year anniversary by taking up our offer of free rides.”
Cllr David Gray, cabinet member for environment and planning at Gloucestershire County Council, said: “It’s great to see so many people have signed up to use Voi e-scooters since they began operating in Cheltenham and Gloucester a year ago.
“E-scooters can be an important, low-carbon mode of sustainable travel and I hope more people are encouraged to try them out and take advantage of the offer of free rides.”
To claim 30 minutes of free rides, use the code ONEYEAR. New riders only. Valid until 1 September 2024.
Ends
Notes to editor
- The carbon calculator was built with and validated by Dr. Manos Chaniotakis, Lecturer in Transport Modelling and Machine Learning from UCL's MaaSLab. It is based on our ride data, local car replacement rates collected via user surveys (Summer 2021, N = 8897), the UK governments emission factors for cars and buses (DEFRA/BEIS, 2019) and Voi's carbon emissions based on the Life Cycle Assessment conducted by EY and our carbon neutrality. (All emission reductions are calculated in CO2 equivlent units, meaning they factor in all other GHG emissions.) Third party validation: The model was verified by Dr. Manos Chaniotakis, Lecturer in Transport Modelling and Machine Learning from UCL's MaaSLab.
- Rider survey data from Voi riders in Gloucestershire November/December 2023
For further information, please contact:
Juliette Maxam, Senior PR manager, Voi UK, Ireland and Belgium
juliette.maxam@voiapp.io
About Voi
Founded in 2018, Voi is a Swedish micromobility company offering e-scooter and e-bike sharing in partnership with towns, cities and local communities. We believe e-scooters can play a central role in changing how people move in our towns and cities in the future. We want to ensure that the micromobility transformation happens the right way - through real innovative technology, open and transparent dialogue with towns, cities and governments and by adapting our products to local needs. Voi’s holistic Environmental Action Plan tackles emissions and promotes renewable energy use and circularity along its supply chain.
Voi operates in over 100 towns and cities across 12 countries. It is headquartered in Stockholm and employs 1,000 people. To date, Voi boasts more than seven million riders and has served more than 150+ million rides.
