E-scooter firm invests £3m to address safety concerns

An e-scooter company has announced it will invest £3m into improving safety, parking and enforcement over the next two years.

Voi, a rental e-scooter operator, said the funding would be used to expand street patrols, improve parking infrastructure and strengthen measures against anti-social riding across Northamptonshire.

The plans were developed in response to concerns raised by councillors, residents and police.

"This £3m commitment is our response," said Alex Langlands, the market development manager for Voi in Northamptonshire.

The Department for Transport (DfT) estimates between 640,000 and 950,000 people in England own an e-scooter.

An estimated 1,484 people were injured in e-scooter collisions in 2025. In the same year, 10 people died while riding e-scooters.

In Northamptonshire, police seized 166 illegal e-scooters during 2025-26, compared with 42 in 2023-24.

Northamptonshire Police launched a crackdown, named Operation Tides, after a five-year-old boy suffered a fractured skull when he was hit by an e-scooter on the pavement in Northampton last month.

It is illegal for anyone to ride a privately owned e-scooter in public, on pavements, on roads or in parks.

It is only legal to ride on private land with the permission of the landowner.

The only e-scooters that can be ridden on public roads are those hired from approved schemes.

Voi said dedicated patrols would be deployed to known problem areas and busy locations across Northampton, Wellingborough, Corby, Kettering, Rushden and Higham Ferrers.

Their role would include tackling irresponsible parking, pavement riding and other forms of anti-social behaviour.

The patrol teams would also help enforce parking rules, with repeat offenders facing larger fines and account suspensions.

There would also be efforts to prevent underage riding, such as more frequent identity checks, and targeted verification around schools and colleges.

Other planned changes include a review of no-ride and no-parking zones, expanded slow-speed areas in high-risk locations, and wider use of technology designed to detect pavement riding and wrong-way travel.

New parking bays are set to be installed at locations including St Giles Street in Northampton and Wharf Road in Higham Ferrers.

Existing painted bays will be refreshed, while incentive schemes will encourage riders to park correctly near destinations such as Northampton General Hospital, Kettering General Hospital and Wellingborough Station.

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