A public smart scooter parking lot, which lets users lock and load all e-scooters, was unveiled last month at Smart City World Congress in Barcelona by Bikeep.
 
Bikeep, a smart commercial bike-parking provider, was part of the Estonian joint-stand, showcasing 11 start-ups from Estonia providing technology for sustainable urbanisation.
 
Over the past couple of years, electric scooters have occupied the sidewalks and pavements of metropolitan cities across the world as these are believed to be the next big disruptors in last kilometre transportation. Aside from improving urban mobility, the heavy usage of electric scooters has triggered complaints of clutter, blocked pavements and potential danger to pedestrians.
 
Also, being dockless and unlocked, scooters easily become a target of vandalism, resulting in financial losses for e-scooter sharing companies. Thus, cities and providers are looking for ways to take better control of the use of scooters.
 
“Bikeep’s parking lot is first of its kind as it allows to lock and load all e-scooters, despite their manufacturer or service provider, which has not been possible until now,” said Kristjan Lind, CEO of Bikeep. “Our scooter stations are designed to improve the usability of the micro mobility devices: scooters in our parking lots are easily accessible yet securely locked to protect them from vandals and do not require daily pick-up for loading.”
 
Head of the Estonian delegation at the congress, Kairit Sikkal from Enterprise Estonia, said Estonia was a perfect breeding ground for technological start-ups such as Bikeep that were providing sustainable products for urbanisation and smart cities.
 
“Estonia is a hometown of innovation having a significant experience in building a digital society and economy, having 99% of its services online, providing its citizens online voting and e-school system,” said Sikkal. “All 11 start-ups presented at the Estonian joint-stand have the potential of becoming disrupters in their field.”
 
Enterprise Estonia is a public entrepreneurship-supporting organisation to promote Estonian economic development by encouraging export and attracting foreign direct investments. One way to develop export is by organising joint stands at international fairs. Participation in the exposition was co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund.