Bolt scooters now say “thank you” when lifted from the ground

Now that the weather is warming up, electric scooters will start to become popular again on city streets. The Bolt company has announced that its rental scooters are getting a new feature this new season, which it hopes will limit vandalism. Each scooter is now equipped with a special system that says “thank you” when someone picks up a Bolt scooter from the ground in an upright position.

Bolt has integrated a new “thank you” system for vandalised scooters

The system uses sensors already found in Bolt 4th generation scooters, such as accelerometer and GPS, and when the software detects that the scooter is upright again, it will play a “thank you” sound. Of course, this message is pre-recorded and will be the same every time. Bolt representatives also mention that those who vandalise rental scooters on the street risk criminal prosecution, according to Article 253, paragraph 1 of the new Penal Code:

“Destroying, degrading or rendering useless property belonging to another or preventing the taking of measures for the preservation or salvage of such property, as well as removing the measures taken, shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term of three months to two years or a fine.”

Along with the new thanksgiving system, Bolt also introduces a new parking system, which uses AI. So when you take the photo to confirm the proper parking of the scooter, the AI system will better analyze the circumstances to determine if the scooter is indeed parked in a proper place and position.

“Bolt is constantly developing technologies designed to bring added safety and convenience to both electric scooter users and other traffic participants. With the new feature we aim to reduce the number of overturned scooters, which – in turn – can encourage vandalism: sometimes scooters are parked in incorrect positions or lying on the ground, blocking access or posing a danger to pedestrians. We hope that the vehicle’s ability to say Thank You! will encourage people to act in a civic-minded way and pick up their inappropriately positioned scooters, thus helping to reduce the negative effects of vandalism.”said Călin Leuștean, Micromobility Manager Bolt Romania.

Bolt currently operates electric scooters for rent in 15 cities: Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Constanta, Oradea, Iași, Sibiu, Arad, Galați, Brașov, Târgu Jiu, Târgu Mureș, Pitești, Râmnicu Vâlcea, Botoșani and Piatra Neamț.