Voi publishes annual Safety Report and commits to spearhead safety reporting towards Vision Zero
Jun 17, 2021
Europe’s leading e-scooter operator Voi has published its first annual Safety Report as part of its commitment to Vision Zero.
The report covers Voi’s actions to improve road safety, insights on safety risks and opportunities for shared micro-mobility across Europe.
Heavy, fast-moving vehicles present the greatest road safety risks, and lack of safe road infrastructure is a significant risk for all lightweight travellers.
Voi Technology today publishes its first annual Safety Report intended to increase transparency and foster a dialogue on how shared micromobility can make cities safer.
“This is our first Safety Report, but from now on we will publish a new one every year and report on the measures we’re taking and the progress we’re making year on year towards our Vision Zero target,” says Fredrik Hjelm, CEO of Voi Technology.
Just like many cities and governments, Voi has a Vision Zero target. That means eliminating all severe injuries and fatalities in the value chain by 2030. Reaching this target requires a long-term strategic approach. Crucially, Voi needs to understand the true cause of all crashes and the best ways to solve them.
In this industry-first annual Safety Report, Voi lays out its plan to start with annual Safety Footprint reporting. That means reporting on injuries in the value chain and the safety performance factors that substantially reduces the risk for crashes.
Aligning with the Stockholm Declaration
The report reflects Voi’s commitment to respond to the Stockholm Declaration that calls on businesses to contribute to the traffic safety-related Sustainable Development Goals and report their progress. The work is inspired by the FIA Foundation’s forthcoming Road Safety Index, developed together with the technical consultancy firm AFRY, that will provide a necessary framework for safety reporting.
“The Stockholm Declaration from the third Ministerial Conference on Road Safety pointed out the importance of including traffic safety in the future sustainability reporting,” says Claes Tingvall, a senior consultant at AFRY and former director of traffic safety at the Swedish Transport Administration who was instrumental in developing Vision Zero from the early beginning. “Voi is no doubt a frontrunner in fulfilling this expectation and can serve as a role model for others in the micromobility industry.”
“When everyone openly reports their safety footprint, we can together find solutions. Transparency is key for us to work well together with cities and government authorities to build safer streets,” says Fredrik Hjelm.
In the report, Voi explains its actions to improve road safety. In addition, Voi has gathered insights on safety risks and opportunities for e-scooters and shared micromobility in general. The insights presented in the report build on internal data, external research and interviews with internationally renowned road safety experts.
Leading causes of crashes identified
Building on this research, Voi has identified seven key factors that substantially impact the risk for incidents leading to personal injuries and fatalities.
Heavy, fast-moving vehicles present the greatest road safety risks, causing 80% of fatal bicycle and e-scooter crashes. As well, the lack of safe road infrastructure is a significant risk for all lightweight travellers, with 31% of Europeans finding the lack of dedicated lanes to be a key issue when it comes to e-scooter rides.
It’s also clear that the first rides with an e-scooter have an increased crash risk, with 16% of all crashes resulting in a personal injury occurring on the first ride. Moreover, lack of knowledge about traffic rules and irresponsible user behaviour such as intoxicated riding, driving on pavements and bad parking are risks for riders and other road users. When crashes do occur, lack of a helmet increases the head injury risk.
Voi believes that it’s essential to look at these factors from a holistic perspective and not prevent the adoption of shared micromobility. Building a safe system for lightweight travellers can help reverse car dependency, which will make cities safer, healthier and more sustainable.
“We believe that these are all safety risks and opportunities that we at Voi can impact directly or indirectly to help make streets safer,” said Fredrik Hjelm. “We hope that sharing this research and presenting our actions to increase safety will foster a dialogue on how Voi can improve road safety together with cities and other partners.”
