Salford e-scooters to hit the streets on Monday

Salford’s first e-scooters will take to the road from Monday 26th October as Lime deploys 300 across the city, creating a new affordable, socially distanced and environmentally friendly transport network. 

Lime, which operates e-scooter services in more than 30 countries across five continents, will launch the first phase of the scheme in partnership with The University of Salford, Salford City Council and Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM). Scooters will be available across the University’s Peel Park and Frederick Road campuses to start, offering students and employees of the University an alternative transport method across campus.

The second and third phases of the scheme will see the trial expand to connect the university campus and MediaCityUK, before being rolled out to cover Ordsall and Salford city centre.

Throughout the trial, Lime e-scooters can be ridden on roads and cycle lanes, and users will be required to park them in one of the designated bays. Geofencing technology will limit the scooters from being used outside the trial areas, and Lime will be implementing new ‘pavement detection’ technology, which will track each ride and notify users if they use the scooter on the pavement. Repeat offenders will be suspended or banned from using the service. 

Lime will also help new riders get to grips with e-scooters through a series of ‘first ride academies’ that teach users how to scoot and park safely and responsibly. 

Mike Brown, Director of Strategic Partnerships at The University of Salford commented: “E-scooters are used in cities around the world and we are excited to be a key partner in the UK’s e-scooter trial. The University of Salford is the only UK University involved in a DfT approved e-scooter trial, and it’s great to be able to offer this safe, green and fun mode of transport to both students and our colleagues. We have extensive research experience and leadership in Urban Studies and Mobility with this opportunity putting us at the forefront of the Future of Mobility.”

Nicola Kane, Head of Strategic Planning, Research and Innovation at TfGM said: “We know people want to use e-scooters to get about and they can be a stepping stone to encouraging them to use cars less for local journeys – reducing congestion, improving connectivity with public transport hubs and making our air cleaner. This is an exciting step and we will be watching with interest.” 

Florence Milner, General Manager UK and Ireland at Lime added: “We love working with innovative towns and cities - such as Salford - which take sustainable transport seriously and want to lead by example. While it’s important people limit their travel at the moment, we know there are still times when people need to get around, and e-scooters provide an open-air, socially-distant, sustainable and affordable alternative to car journeys. It’s also imperative that people don’t automatically revert to car use when they are able to travel more freely, so having this new option available is more important than ever. Over the next year we’re expecting our e-scooters to reduce nearly 100,000 car journeys and save an incredible 42 metric tonnes of CO2, proving there is a necessary place for e-scooters on our roads and in our cities.”

The e-scooters will be available via the Lime app and will cost £1 to unlock, and 15p per minute thereafter. Students will receive a discounted rate through ‘Lime Access’ and key workers will also have access to unlimited free rides as the trial expands.   Riders must be 18 or over and have a full or a provisional driving licence, which will be validated through the app when they sign up. All riders should wear a helmet and santise their hands before and after using an e-scooter. 

Lime prioritises the health of its riders above all else and wants to make sure everyone experiences a safe and reliable service. Lime adheres to local guidelines around Coronavirus and follows Public Health England’s directives for disinfecting and will ensure every e-scooter is regularly disinfected.

Lime was appointed after a rigorous procurement process. Lime is the world’s leading micromobility company with schemes live in over 120 countries, including a successful scheme in Milton Keynes, where over 20,000 rides were taken in the first month alone.