Request ID: FOI-0411-2223 Date published: 24 June 2022
You asked
I am considering doing some analysis of the ongoing e-scooter trials in London. I have accessed the e-scooter trip level data requested by someone earlier to start my analysis – FOI-1571-2122. For reference, this dataset included data for the following:
• Duration
• Distance
• Average speed
• Origin latitude and longitude
• Destination latitude and longitude
It would be really helpful if you could share an updated version of the same dataset with the latest data (preferably from June 2021 to May 2022) with an additional column showing the month in which each trip was undertaken. For clarity, I am not requesting the exact time/date of the trips, just the month in which they were undertaken if possible.
In addition, I would like to request data for incidents/injuries/fatalities involving trial e-scooters (since trial start) including location co-ordinates, and type of injury or accident (e.g. Level 0,1,2,3 etc. as per DfT definitions), if available.
We answered
TfL Ref: FOI-0411-2223
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 26th May 2022 asking for data in connection with the current e-scooter trial.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.
Specifically you asked: “I am considering doing some analysis of the ongoing e-scooter trials in London. I have accessed the e-scooter trip level data requested by someone earlier to start my analysis – FOI-1571-2122. For reference, this dataset included data for the following:
Duration
Distance
Average speed
Origin latitude and longitude
Destination latitude and longitude
It would be really helpful if you could share an updated version of the same dataset with the latest data (preferably from June 2021 to May 2022) with an additional column showing the month in which each trip was undertaken. For clarity, I am not requesting the exact time/date of the trips, just the month in which they were undertaken if possible. In addition, I would like to request data for incidents/injuries/fatalities involving trial e-scooters (since trial start) including location co-ordinates, and type of injury or accident (e.g. Level 0,1,2,3 etc. as per DfT definitions), if available.” I can confirm that we hold the information you require.
In response to the first element of your request (for an update to the data previously issued in response to FOI-1571-2122, with the month of journey also added) please see the first spreadsheet attached (FOI-0411-2223 E-scooter trial trip level data). Please note that the data is provided by each operator via APIs, accessible to TfL through a third party platform. Note also that:
The start and end coordinates are rounded to 3 decimal places. This is the format of the data accessible to TfL, and we do not hold the coordinates to any higher level of detail, and;
The coordinates provided are based on the GPS position of the vehicles at the start and the end of a trip. There is a possibility that in some instances GPS drift influences the accuracy of these coordinates.
In answer to the second element of your request (for incidents/injuries/fatalities involving trial e-scooters since the trial start) please see the second spreadsheet attached (FOI-0411-2223 Incidents). Note that we do not regularly record the “location co-ordinate” of these incidents and so the location data is provided by borough and road name.Please also note that this dataset is different, and not comparable to, any general e-scooter (private and rental) injury statistics for London released by the Department for Transport (DfT), or any e-scooter (private and rental) injury statistics that may be published by TfL at a later date, both of which comprise injuries from collisions based on data supplied by police forces, using the “STATS19” reporting system. The STATS19 reporting system does not include “e-scooter” as a distinct mode, and does not contain a clear provision for injuries to be separated by either rental or private vehicles. The data being provided in response to this FOI is distinct and collected as part of the London e-scooter rental trial’s Incident Management process. It is not a subset of either such dataset described above, and so should not, for example, be used to assess the proportion of e-scooter injuries in London that occur on rental e-scooters. Due to the lack of police involvement in many slight and rider-only injuries, it is possible that TfL are recording injuries on rental e-scooters through this process that would not appear in any collision datasets supplied by the DfT and police forces. The safety of e-scooter riders and other road users is paramount to the London e-scooter rental trial. As part of the incident management process established specifically for this trial, e-scooter Operators report injuries that they have been made aware of, and present the details of these to TfL on a weekly basis. As this data is Operator-reported, it is dependent on the Operator actually being aware that the injury has taken place. This data relies upon either the rider themselves, other road users involved in the incident, members of the public, emergency services, or TfL’s Network Management Control Centre or the relevant Borough reporting the injury to the operator. Some riders may not report injuries for a variety of reasons. Serious injuries are more likely to be reported (either by those directly involved, TfL’s Network Management Control Centre, or emergency services), and we therefore have a high degree of confidence in the number of serious injuries that have been reported through this process. Slight injuries are more likely to be self-reported by users, with less detail on the incident provided.
To maintain consistency with the definition used by TfL for road collisions more widely, which follows the DfT’s STATS19 definitions, serious injuries are categorised as an injury for which a person is detained in hospital as an 'in-patient', or any of the following injuries whether or not they are detained in hospital: fractures, concussion, internal injuries, crushings, burns (excluding friction burns), severe cuts, severe general shock requiring medical treatment and injuries causing death 30 or more days after the collision. Slight injuries are categorised as a sprain (including whiplash), bruising, minor cuts, and slight shock (not requiring medical treatment). We have also taken the decision to categorise as slight any reported injury where details of the injury outcome have not been provided by the reporter and attempts to follow up have been unsuccessful, but the description of the incident strongly suggests any sustained injury would have been slight – such injuries are classed in this dataset as ‘Slight – Unknown’.
Not all injuries reported by operators to TfL will have had independent or official medical verification, to confirm that an injury was sustained, and that the severity reported is accurate. The description of injuries reported directly by users is taken at face value in the absence of any further information that verifies the nature of the injury sustained. When an injury has been reported to an Operator, they make attempts to contact the rider to verify that the injury took place, and find out further details, including how the injury occurred and any contributory factors. Such attempts to contact the rider are not always successful, and so TfL cannot be confident of the validity of such reports. Such reported injuries are still counted here.
The incidents reported here that include serious or fatal injuries are provisional. The injury report may not be submitted to TfL on the date the injury occurred, and detail on the severity of an incident may change over time. Where information on the severity of an injury changes, these statistics will be updated to reflect the change. Changes may also be made by exception. All incidents reported in each four-weekly trial period are discussed at a safety forum that is attended by TfL, all three e-scooter operators, participating Boroughs, the Metropolitan police and City of London police, and relevant stakeholders to ensure any learning is shared widely.
Finally, please note that general information and data about the trial can be found on our website here:
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
Yours sincerely,
David Wells FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
