Electric scooter rental company Tier and Google Maps have announced a new partnership to make it easier for users to find and access e-scooters. The companies have teamed up to launch a feature, which lets riders locate nearby Tier e-scooters through Google Maps when planning routes for the ‘first and last mile’ of their journeys.
For the time being, that's true as long as you're in either Munich, Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Vienna, Zurich, Oslo, Stockholm or Helsinki, with the service initially rolling out in these places before expanding to other cities.
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Users who find themselves in need of an e-scooter can find the feature under the tab for cycling directions within Google Maps. Given that you’re in one of the 11 chosen cities, users will now find the ‘Tier’ button within the app's interface.
Once clicked, prospective riders can then view the nearest available Tier e-scooter, along with the walking distance and charging status of that particular e-scooter. We think this is a neat feature; it's one that should go some way to help you avoid picking up an e-scooter with a drained battery.
If you've ever had a go on an e-scooter, you'll probably know that half the battle is actually locating the street hubs where they live. But with Google Maps' new Tier integration in hand, things should hopefully become a lot easier when searching for a ride.
Other cities are set to follow suit, too, after news that Transport for London (TfL) selected Tier to bring e-scooters to London. According to Intelligent Transport, e-scooter riders will not only be able to find Tier e-scooters through Google Maps, but they will also be able to incorporate helpful information like anticipated arrival time and cost estimate into their journey planning.
Tinia Mühlfenzl, Director of Market Development at Tier, said the collaboration with Google Maps brings visibility to Tier's fleet of e-scooters, helping to "ensure that riders have access to the form of transportation that best suits their daily mobility needs.”
That's not all, either: Tier has been busy collaborating in recent months, with the e-scooter firm also announcing a new partnership with navigation experts Beeline to integrate its routing software into the Tier app.
