Neuron To Be Carbon Negative As New Report Highlights The Positive Impact Of Its Global Operations

NEW ZEALAND, 26 May, 2022 - Australia and New Zealand’s leading e-scooter and e-bike operator Neuron Mobility has announced its commitment to achieve Carbon Negative status for its global operations by 2025. The announcement coincides with the release of a new report by the company titled: Meeting Micromobility’s Potential, which highlights the work the operator has done to improve the social, economic and environmental impact e-scooters have on cities as well setting out ambitious targets for continual improvement.

The commitment to become Carbon Negative by 2025 follows on from Neuron securing Carbon Neutral certification last year and signing up to The Climate Pledge to help reach Net Zero by 2040. The commitment means Neuron will be taking ambitious measures to reduce its emissions footprint, as much as possible, by addressing emissions-intensive processes in the supply chain, manufacturing, operations and end of life treatment for vehicles.

In the meantime, Neuron also remains focused on replacing car journeys with more sustainable alternatives. In New Zealand, 48% of all Neuron trips replaced a car journey, which has reduced the number of car trips taken by 530,000, avoided an impressive 155 tonnes of carbon emissions and offset the use of roughly 66,000 litres of gasoline to date. Globally, 3 million car journeys were replaced in 2021 saving an impressive 844 tonnes of carbon emissions.

Neuron has experienced tremendous growth globally since September 2020, with the company tripling its operations and launching in 22 new cities including Dunedin, Hamilton and Christchurch in New Zealand. This growth was bolstered by ongoing work in communities where the company operates to ensure Neuron’s e-scooters and e-bikes create a positive impact. Neuron has developed strong working partnerships with a range of organisations, including road safety charity Brake in New Zealand. These partnerships are helping to ensure Neuron’s services are sensitive to the needs of all road and pavement users and knowledge and feedback from these groups continues to shape Neuron’s future operations.

In addition to forging partnerships with advocacy and community groups, Neuron has continued to focus on being a responsible and adaptable partner to the cities it operates in. This has been particularly important over the last year as cities recover from the pandemic. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Neuron played an important role in offering healthcare and emergency services workers a socially distanced way to travel. The company provided $100,000 in free rides to the people of New Zealand to vaccination centres. As cities recover from the pandemic, Neuron has also helped businesses reconnect with their customers and tourists, with research from Neuron showing five out of 10 rides result in a purchase at a local business.

Neuron has also strengthened local economies by providing over 1,400 employment opportunities worldwide with a policy of not using gig-economy workers while also meeting national and local living wage levels for all staff across all markets. In New Zealand, Neuron has become a certified Living Wage Employer, offering salaries for all employees that surpass the national living wage levels.

The safety of riders and the wider community has always been a top priority for Neuron, from designing and manufacturing their own e-scooters to their work with safety partners and education programmes to spread awareness of safe riding. Over the last year Neuron deployed over 100 Safety Ambassadors on the streets to educate riders in New Zealand, where over a thousand face-to-face briefings were conducted as part of the company’s ScootSafe campaigns.

Investment in safety innovation has been a driving force behind Neuron’s success and this continued in 2021 with the trial of new technology including the company’s ‘e-scooter brain’ which uses smart sensors and AI to detect and respond to dangerous riding in real time and to offer unprecedented control over how vehicles are ridden and parked. The trial is ongoing and will see successful features rolled out across Neuron’s fleet internationally in the future.

Neuron’s ongoing focus on making a positive impact is valued by both riders and the cities the company operates in. In 2021 the company saw a 100% renewal rate from city authorities in all markets and when surveyed, 84% of riders in New Zealand believed Neuron has had a positive impact on their cities.

Zachary Wang, Neuron CEO said: “In 2016 when we started the company we envisioned a safe, sustainable and accessible way for people to move around cities and we remain laser-focused on this today. We continue to partner with cities and know that they view responsible operating as central to running a successful micromobility programme.

“We are committed to making a positive social, economic and environmental impact on cities, and setting an ambitious target to go beyond our current Carbon Neutral status to become Carbon Negative by 2025 is the right thing to do. Further to this, we have a clear mandate to partner with cities, working with a diverse range of groups in the community including riders, those with accessibility needs, tourist offices and local businesses to bring them the best and most accessible service possible.”

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