E-scooters firm Voi 'is taking up more pavement space'

Rental e-scooters are only available through government trials in 23 towns and cities around England.

It is illegal to use private e-scooters on public roads.

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European micro-mobility company Voi Technology runs the e-scooter trial in Oxford.

The trial, funded by the Department for Transport, has been extended several times.

From December 5, people wanting to hire an e-scooter have been legally required to provide their name, driving licence number and a photograph of the front of their driving licence to hire operators.

Sushila Dhall, of Oxford Pedestrians Association, said she did not approve of the new arrangement.

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She added: "We are totally against this as it takes up more pavement space than the scooters already do.

"Our belief is they should have had scooter parks in the road, not on pavements.

"As you can see they narrow the footway very considerably. We are going to try to force a change of direction on this."

The latest round of e-scooter bay parking installations in Oxford took place on March 21 and a total of eight bays were installed.

Two of these were the physical corral bays (also known as racks) and six were painted bays.

One of the new-style bays is in London Road, Headington, and another is in Frideswide Square.

A county council spokeswoman said: “Visitors and residents of Oxford can hire e-scooters as part of a government trial.

“We are working with our operating partner, Voi, to increase the availability of responsible parking options.

"As the highways authority, we gave permission for eight new parking bays to be installed last month in high-use areas.

"As the parking bays are temporary, they are classed under permitted development on public highway land and planning permission is not required."

The spokeswoman added: "Oxford City Council is kept informed about any changes made to the e-scooter trial and consulted if an e-scooter parking bay is proposed in an area of historical significance and other prominent areas.

“We welcome feedback as the trial continues.”

The e-scooter trial began in Headington in February 2021 before expanding to the wider city.

By March 2022, there were 656 trial Voi e-scooters available for hire in the city, which had taken nearly 210,000 journeys and travelled more than 310,000 miles.

These trips saved approximately 130 tonnes of carbon emissions according to Voi estimates.

A Voi Technology spokeswoman said: "We have installed new parking racks in Oxford in partnership with Oxfordshire County Council which manages the e-scooter trial in the city.

"The new parking racks, which were co-designed with the RNIB, have replaced some marked parking bays.

"They have been introduced in high-use areas to ensure riders are able to park responsibly and considerately."

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning. 

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