Auckland to get 2,500 e-scooters

Auckland is about to be hit with a new form of sustainable, quick, easy, and super versatile last-mile transport with the launch of Onzo’s rental e-scooters next month.

An initial order of 500 Onzo e-scooters are en route to Auckland and set to hit the streets next month. A further 2,000 will join them in coming months.

With a 250W motor, the e-scooters are capable of top speeds of around 30 kilometres per hour and can cover around 30 kilometres before requiring a recharge.

“E-scooters are great because they make travelling easy and fun,” Onzo Chief Growth Officer, Min-Kyu Jung, says.

“Unlike bikes, e-scooters are allowed to be used on footpaths and don’t require helmets. They’re perfect to pick up anywhere, anytime, for last-mile journeys such as between the bus stop and the office.”

“I think this is totally going to revolutionise the way Aucklanders travel around this city. We’re designing the system to make it super quick, easy, and cheap to pick up e-scooters for short journeys multiple times a day.”

The scooters feature regenerative braking to recharge the battery when the brakes are applied, or when a rider is going downhill. They also have front and rear lights for added safety.

Just like Onzo’s bikes, the system will be dockless and users will simply use the Onzo app to unlock the scooters from wherever they’re left around the city by the previous rider.

Onzo will crowdsource the recharging of the scooters at night to the public.

“We’ll be paying users to bring depleted e-scooters home to charge overnight and leave them in designated areas afterwards for other people to use,” Jung explains.

“With almost 80% of New Zealand’s electricity coming from renewable sources, riders can breathe easy knowing they’re not contributing to pollution in the city.

“Electric vehicles are the future of transport and although I’m sure many of us would love to drive around Auckland in a Tesla, the reality is these e-scooters are far more efficient at getting you around downtown.

“Plus, it’s way more fun zipping around on a scooter than being stuck in a car in traffic, even if that car is a Tesla.”

The rest of New Zealand outside Auckland can also look forward to getting their feet on the scooters soon with Onzo talking to city councils around the country about launching in other main centres in coming months.

ENDS

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