After its first few weeks of operation in Ponta Delgada, with more than 35,000 kilometers covered on bicycles and scooters, Bolt is reinforcing its commitment to the city’s mobility and people by introducing ParkAssist+ technology. The aim is to improve people’s parking habits and, consequently, the organization of vehicles in the city.
The functionality, developed by Bolt, checks that a scooter is left in the correct position and located within a designated parking area following local regulations. If these requirements are not met, users will be asked up to two times to re-park the scooter; if they still end the journey by ignoring the requirements, they will be notified that a parking fine may be imposed.
“We want to offer the best possible service to the people of Ponta Delgada, helping them to get around quickly and in an environmentally friendly way. To do this, we must continue, together with the municipality, to educate people about the proper use of vehicles. Implementing this technology is another crucial initiative to achieve this,” said Frederico Venâncio, Bolt’s micro-mobility manager for Portugal and Spain.
Bolt’s scooters and electric bicycles also have Artificial Intelligence technology, developed using an algorithm “trained” with 150,000 photographs of parked scooters, both correctly and incorrectly, to learn to distinguish the various scenarios. This technological model can also be adapted to specific contexts within the multiple cities where the operator is present.
Bolt’s micro-mobility vehicles are currently available in 17 cities, from the north to the south of the country and in the Azores. The micro-mobility service is integrated into Bolt’s app, and to unlock the scooter or bicycle and start the journey, you only need to choose the service icon and scan its QR code.

in Diário dos Açores – Osvaldo Cabral, director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.