Against the background of the extensive public concern surrounding traffic accidents involving scooters and against the backdrop of local authority elections in a little over a year, Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai today (Wednesday) issued a harsh statement against the delivery company Volt and its conduct in organizing the activities of its couriers, who often ride on electric tools. “I understand that many residents benefit from the company’s services, but we cannot continue to allow its activity at any cost,” he wrote in a tweet on Twitter.
1/5 I issued a yellow card to Walt.
This week I met with Lior Eshkol, CEO of Volt Israel and explained to her my uncompromising position regarding the wild driving of Volt couriers around the city. I understand that many residents benefit from the company’s services, but we cannot continue to allow its activity at any cost.
– Ron Huldai (@Ron_Huldai) September 21, 2022
“It is in our blood, and human life is more important than any lunch. Although I welcome the Ministry of Transportation’s intention to require a license plate for every rider on an electric two-wheeler, I do not intend to sit idly by and wait for the legislation to come into force. It may take a long time. For now We operate through parallel channels wherever possible,” he wrote and added: “As of today, Walt’s messengers have a significant share ofTal in corrupting the driving culture in the city. This must stop. In my opinion, the responsibility for the dangerous driving is registered in the name of the operating company. I don’t care about the business model, I don’t care if the messengers are company employees or freelancers. It’s just not interesting.”
According to Huldai, the company was instructed to “fundamentally change the structure of the messengers’ identification numbers.” “A messenger who gets on the sidewalk will have to look for a new job very quickly. There will be no more warnings, this is the last chance to fix the road,” he threatened.
However, the municipality has not yet detailed what Huldai’s directive includes operationally and what steps will be taken. In Tel Aviv-Jaffa, they strive to enforce offenses in electric vehicles using cameras, but many times the identification numbers charged by the delivery companies are hidden.
Since the beginning of the year, 400 messengers have been blocked in Walt due to complaints on the subject
Much criticism is also directed towards the company’s employment structure, which rewards couriers according to the speed of deliveries, which is why some couriers commit traffic violations. The company claims that the identification numbers now also appear on the company’s delivery food bags, on three sides of the bag: “The step is part of Volt’s steps to improve driving safety, with zero tolerance for reckless driving.”
“This week, Volt Israel CEO Lior Eshkol met with Huldai and presented him with Volt’s policy on the matter. Among other things, Eshkol shared that since the beginning of 2022, 400 couriers have been blocked from making deliveries for Volt due to complaints about road safety,” the company said.
The Ministry of Transportation published regulations for public comment that will require the installation of a personal identification number on electric tools, and couriers of courier companies will also be required to have a license number, but the regulations will only be able to enter into force after the approval of the Economic Committee – which will only happen after the Knesset elections. Also, the problem is not only in regulation, but also in enforcement – as even today there are various laws that are not sufficiently enforced, such as the flooding of the market with “upgraded” vehicles whose speed exceeds the 25 km/h allowed by law, riding under the age of 16 and significant regulation that Israel has adopted.
The electric vehicles that meet the requirements are mostly those of the cooperative scooter companies, since they are already equipped with identification numbers, have a speed limit and a ban on entering certain areas, as well as the obligation to take a photo of an ID card.
The motorcycles and cars are also a threat
Electric vehicles that travel illegally threaten the safety of pedestrians, but they are not alone: ​​motorcycles drive on sidewalks unhindered and vehicles park on them. Due to “parking shortages” the local authorities do not enforce the law regarding them, even though these are offenses that harm the quality of life and life itself, and the Tel Aviv municipality still has the tools to act for enforcement on the issue.
In addition, the safety of pedestrians is neglected not only on the sidewalks, but also at the crosswalks: according to the CBS data, in 2021 76% of those injured while crossing the road were injured at the crosswalk.
In accidents involving scooters and electric bicycles, according to LMS data, the absolute majority of the injured are the riders themselves. Of the 953 injured in accidents involving electric scooters that were reported to the police, 777 were driving electric scooters (and the rest were additional passengers on the scooters or people injured by the scooters). Of the 382 injured who were admitted to the hospitals and were not reported to the police, 148 were electric scooter drivers.