Drivers can now rent Lime bike-style yellow golf carts in this London borough
If you’ve ever cycled a Lime bike around London and thought your ride could be improved if it had four wheels and a bright yellow paint job – you may be in luck.
Adding to the capital’s roster of rentable vehicles for people who don’t fancy the commitment or cost of owning a car, a fleet of electric buggies has arrived on the streets of Fulham.
They’re run by a company called Yo-Go and are officially known as Neighbourhood Electric Vehicles (NEVs).
For now, access is rather limited. There are just 10 of the canary-yellow carts on offer and you can only find them in four specific parts of leafy west London.
But those who are able to nab one will be able to drive around as much as they like with a top speed of 20mph – about 5mph faster than a Lime bike – at a cost of 20p per minute or 10p per minute for subscribers.
For the time the buggy is parked away from its usual space as you grab something from the shops or pick someone up, that drops to 5p per minute.
Unlike the bike hire schemes in cities around the country, though, you do need to drop off your NEV in the same place you found it once you’re done.
Rental is open to anyone aged between 25 and 70 who has a valid driving licence. It’s all set up through the yo-go.city app, available on Apple or Android.
The buggies can be found in these parts of Fulham:
- Parsons Green
- Finlay/Fulham Palace
- Niton/Woodlawn
- Fulham Reach
Yo-go founder and CEO Sam Bailey told BBC News: ‘We want a vehicle that [users] feel safe interacting with, and what we also trying to do is reduce congestion.
‘So by making the vehicles smaller, the traffic flows better, there’s less constraints on parking, and that benefits everyone in the city.’
To reduce the faff for drivers, all the vehicles come fully insured and Yo-go takes care of maintenance and recharging. The vehicles have solar panels on their roofs to boost their range.
Lime e-bikes have become ubiquitous in London since a trial began in 2021 – though it is common to hear ‘hacked’ bikes clicking on the street, and several other cities have suspended their schemes due to vandalism.
The restrictions and additional measures on Yo-go users will attempt to avoid a similar fate.
Ben Mercer, a marketing director at Leisure Lakes Bikes, said there is ‘no reason’ the buggies should not eventually become a familiar site in other parts of London or other UK cities.
He told Metro: ‘With the rise of rented e-bike and e-buggy schemes, we’re making car-free living more accessible.
‘We might not have any car-free UK town and cities yet but we’re creating some great in-roads and it’s something to keep working towards.’
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