This week, as part of the European Mobility Week celebrations, N332´s instructor, Mark Nolan, was joined by the electric scooter company, Hopp, starting a tour of local schools to educate young people about the dangers, responsibilities, and requirements for riding on this new form of urban mobility.
Students on the Orihuela Costa got to learn many of the basics, including the technical specifications of Personal Mobility Vehicles, the regulations for riding these vehicles, responsible parking, and an introduction to Spanish Traffic Law, such as identifying and abiding by road signs, for example. They were also told about the benefits of personal protective equipment, such as wearing a crash helmet and high-visibility clothing.
The reason Hopp came along, not to be confused with a rival company with very similar branding, Hoppy, is that the management of Hopp are fully aware of a lot of the negative connotations surrounding e-scooter use and are taking positive actions to try to resolve as many of these highlighted issues as they can.
One clear deficiency is a lack of knowledge or awareness by many of these scooter riders about the rules. Most of the students who will be spoken to during this tour are too young to ride an e-scooter, but the belief is that by giving them the basic knowledge and skills before you are able to ride, will set the foundations for a safer experience for all in the future. They are also trying initiatives to educate older users too, but by reaching out to students in these schools is a positive move, as it not only gives future knowledge, but it also affirms the overall road safety message.
Once the talk was over, the students were invited to ride on a Hopp scooter, after being given instruction my the firm´s representatives, and got to put into practice what they had learnt, and use one of these vehicles, which many of them would not legally be able to do, with experts on hand to answer any doubts they had, and assist them in their learning experience.
Later in the week, the students were invited to join others on the Orihuela Costa for a practice and training day organised by the neighbourhood associations, which allowed them to continue their training in a closed and safe environment.
Nobody would expect a person to get behind the wheel of a car and suddenly be a safe and competent driver, and the same applies to an extent when we are talking about vehicles like this. That is why N332 is happy to support Hopp in their efforts to provide practical information so that riders can be a little bit safer, and they will be more aware of how coexistence on the roads and neighbourhoods is important to the development of urban transport solutions.
The students all receive a certificate of completion of the training day which shows their commitment to be a safer and responsible road user, and reenforces their commitment into the future.
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