Spin racks up more than 100,000 rides across Essex trial areas

Micromobility operator Spin has announced that e-scooter riders have taken more than 100,000 rides since it launched a trial in Essex as part of Essex County Council’s (ECC) Safer Greener Healthier campaign. Spin says this milestone has been achieved in five months across the six service areas in Essex, partly driven by a growing need for a socially-distanced means of transport as people slowly return to being out and about, including commuting to work and running errands.

Each trial has started on a small-scale and is constantly evaluated in collaboration with Essex County Council (ECC) and local authorities and is driven by demand. Spin manages per-minute hire-schemes in Basildon, Chelmsford, Clacton-on-Sea, Colchester and a slightly different scheme called Spin+ in Brentwood and Braintree, where customers can hire an e-scooter longer term and have sole access to it 24/7. 

Rider data confirms that Spin e-scooters are used for short journeys, on average 3km in distance and 23 minutes in length, which the operator says is in line with one of the overall objectives of the scheme. Almost half of the rides (46,600) have taken place in Basildon, Spin’s first Essex location to launch five months ago, but Colchester is catching up fast (27,500 rides) where Spin launched less than three months ago, followed by Chelmsford (21,000) and Clacton-on-Sea (6,900).

As part of its commitment to safe riding, Spin has also begun a series of its Spin Safe in-person training events across Essex to educate riders on how to safely ride an e-scooter while respecting all road users – including the vulnerable. So far 150 people have taken part in Spin Safe events in Basildon and Chelmsford, with the operator confirming that hundreds more will have the opportunity to participate in the coming months in other locations.

 “The pace of e-scooter adoption in Essex represents an exciting shift to more sustainable transport in line with the council’s Safer Greener Healthier campaign. Now that lockdown restrictions are easing, we’re seeing more people use our e-scooters for short journeys to get them to key destinations across the region and reduce the number of short car journeys across Essex,” said Steve Pyer, UK Country Manager at Spin.

“Safety remains our top priority and we’re continuing to educate riders and the wider community about how to ride and park our free-floating e-scooters safely. We do this through a wide range of activities including digital campaigns, in-app notifications, in-person training events, free helmet giveaways. As well as partnerships with London Vision, the sight-loss charity, RoSPA, the road safety organisation and the Sensory Action Alliance, supporting those with sight or hearing loss.”