Bird launches electric scooters in London's Olympic Park
Electric scooter company Bird has taken a step towards entering the UK market by launching within the London Olympic Park.
While the British American startup can not be fully launched in Britiain due to laws that prevent scooters from being used on roads or sidewalks, Bird has found a way to get away.
From Tuesday, Bird will make its scooters available along a route in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London. There are conversations with "more private landowners," according to Bird Corrector in the UK.
The Olympic Park was chosen because the owners, London Legacy Development Corporation, had been playing with new technology ventures earlier (such as a driver-free bus) and because Bird was keen to solve it as it looks like a "mobility problem" . "
At one end of the Olympic Park is a business campus that houses more companies, plus two campuses, which Bird aims to give faster access. Here is the route:
"This particular location suffers a 30-minute walk from here to the nearest tube station," told Corbett Business Insider. "Using electric scooters we can take a 30-minute walk for a four-minute bird trip. "
The plan will start with only 50 scooters and scale up as needed." Gone are the days when you've seen dockless schemes in the last flood market and annoy the city, "Corbett said. do ans careful scaling. "
Capped at a maximum speed of 15km / h, scooters are geofenced, which means that if someone drives outside of the specified route, the scooter will begin to lower and end to work.
Meanwhile, a handful of designated "Birdwatchers" will be stationed in the park all day to ensure that people park properly and dismantle into junctions.
To mark the launch, Bird invited the Olympic skater Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards to become his first British rider.
Fuglobbyering Against Old Laws
Electric scooters have not launched in Britain because of a 1988 law banning them from being used on roads, and a law of 1835 that prevents them from riding the sidewalks. Business Insider saw emails from Bird to London Transport Regulator TfL complained about the law of 1835.
Corbett told Business Insider that Bird focuses on lobbying to get scooters on the road, not sidewalks. "It's just a matter of time, we must take everyone on a journey and we are patient," he said.
He said that Bird does not know how long it can take to influence any promise, as scooters must go through rigorous safety testing.
"We do not want to launch without the city's approval. So what DfT [Department for Transport] wants us to do will we do to demonstrate viability," added Corbett.
