Micromobility Won Gold at Paris Olympics

Plus, Navee wants to make e-scooters big in China.

Welcome to the Micromobility Newsletter, your weekly digest of important events and industry news in the world of personal transportation.

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What You Need to Know Today

Paris’s massive investment in cycling infrastructure was put to the test recently during the 2024 Olympics—and the system passed with flying colors. Major micromobility thoroughfares experienced a 25% increase in traffic over last year, and Lime reported a 50% increase in shared e-bike trips.

Finnish employee bike benefit platform Vapaus has raised €10M in a Series A funding round. The company says its net revenue grew from €4.5M in net revenues in 2021 to an impressive €30M+ in 2023.

Three bike industry veterans—René Wiertz, Gérard Vroomen, and Andy Ording—are joining together to form Fundracer BV, a dedicated investment fund for micromobility startups. The first three companies that Fundracer has invested in are Bo Mobility, Newton Rider, and Specter.

Image Credit: Newton Rider, Bo Mobility, Specter

Tampa, FL just launched an e-bike incentive program that will offer 108 vouchers for a discount of $1,000 to $3,000. Voucher recipients will be chosen through a lottery system.

Relatedly, an Arkansas non-profit plans to launch a $7M e-bike rebate with funding from the EPA.

Laundryheap, an on-demand laundry and dry cleaning service provider, plans to expand its cargo bike fleet across the UK and Europe by partnering with “bike-as-a-service” startup Delivery Mates.

Image Credit: Laundryheap

Building owners in NYC can now receive incentives to install safe charging e-bike and scooter stations. The incentives would cover 50% of the cost of any infrastructure upgrade and the cost of upgrading the electrical equipment in the building.

The total value of Poland’s electric bike market is expected to reach nearly €300M in 2024.

More US states are banning kei cars and trucks—Massachusetts is the latest—citing safety concerns.

Electric scooters are banned in most parts of China, but manufacturer Navee is working to change that with a new pilot program of 10,000 shared e-scooters and e-bikes in the city of Suzhou.

Lime plans to enter the Japanese market for the first time with the launch of its e-scooter service in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, Luup, a homegrown Japanese micromobility provider, is partnering with and receiving equity investment from Blue Incubation and Tokyu Corporation, two major transportation infrastructure providers, to integrate Luup’s services with the railway system in Tokyo.

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