Micromobility firm, and London e-scooter trial operator, Dott has partnered with cycling technology company See.Sense to trial the use of e-scooters to measure road quality and identify dangerous areas.
A number of Dott’s fleet were fitted with sensors from See.Sense, which monitored rider behaviour on the vehicles for a period of 10 weeks. The data collected covered 1,800 rides and a total distance of more than 3,300km with over 18 million sensor readings recorded in total.
Throughout each journey, See.Sense’s monitors can detect changes in rider behaviour and help better understand the user’s experience on the road. The findings reveal areas which experience particularly high levels of braking or swerving and changes in the road surface.
Irene McAleese, co-founder & CSO, See.Sense, said: “Our technology has been created to provide safety focused data on the adoption and maintenance of infrastructure. We’re excited to partner with Dott on this project to demonstrate a scalable solution that provides cities with powerful data driven insights that will help cities unlock the true potential of micromobility.”
The sensors are designed to identify road quality “hot spots”, which will be shared with the authorities to suggest improvements in road quality, helping make the streets safer for all micromobility users. According to the partnership, braking and swerving can happen around uneven and rough road surfaces or potholes, causing a rider to react suddenly.
Data was also collected to compare surface types and See.Sense’s data could identify consistent patterns on road, cycle path and footpaths. Understanding when riders are using footpaths could be another indicator of a poor-quality road surface. Or it could be down to rider behaviour, allowing Dott to prompt e-learning modules, revise speed limits when the change in surface is detected, or further investigate unsafe riding.
The trial aimed to demonstrate how Dott can collaborate with See.Sense, city authorities and transport departments to provide a reliable service to its riders whilst gathering information to improve road safety.
Maxim Romain, co-founder and COO, Dott, said: “Quality infrastructure is key to helping users of micro-mobility feel safe whilst on the road. The results of this new trial, in partnership with See.Sense, reveal that Dott’s vehicles can do more than provide efficient, reliable and sustainable transport for its riders – they can also deliver valuable learnings to create smart cities which are safer and more pleasant for all residents.”
CiTTi took a look behind the scenes at Dott’s London warehouse for the November 2021 issue:
