Call for tender: Expert study on safety and environmental aspects of the use of Personal Mobility Devices

The FIA European Bureau is now calling for expressions of interest for an expert study on the safety and environmental aspects of the use of Personal Mobility Devices.

Objectives of the study:

• The research aims at obtaining a deep understanding of the road and functional safety implications of a set of PMD, from a technical and a legal perspective.
• The set of PMDs studied shall be comprised of electric bicycles, electric scooters, self-balancing machines, and cargo bicycles.
• The study shall examine the existing driver requirement, user behaviour & awareness, as well as technical and environmental aspects applicable to the selected PMDs.
• The output of the research shall be policy recommendations aiming at improving road safety multimodality, and user convenience, while not adding unreasonable burden and costs on consumers.

Areas of focus:

I – Consolidation and analysis of relevant literature

Desktop research:

• Identify the relevant EU regulatory framework applicable to the selected PMDs. This task shall be complemented by a comparative analysis on how the use of PMDs as well as its technical requirements are regulated in three Member States.
• Collect and interpret publicly available data and information on accidents involving PMDs.
• Outline, analyse and draw conclusions on available literature on the environmental impacts and recyclability aspects of the selected PMDs.

Analysis of the collected information

• Identify the risks and opportunities of the current EU regulatory framework applicable to PMDs.
• Study whether certain PMDs are inherently unsafe from a technical perspective

II – Consumer awareness

The study should seek to understand consumer views on PMDs. The contractor shall conduct a consumer survey covering the following:

• Perception, potential, and use of PMDs
• Awareness and knowledge of the main traffic rules and restriction applicable to PMDs
• Main challenges of the use/interaction with PMDs

The survey shall be launched in three EU countries (suggested by the contractor) and aim at reaching around 1 000 respondents per country. If possible, the inclusion of statistic questions (age) is preferred. The contractor will be the sole responsible for obtaining the above mentioned figures.

III – Way forward   

The aim is to make policy recommendation with a view to improve road safety, multimodality, and user convenience. Special attention shall be given to the ways of addressing driver education and training. In other words, recommendations should address the right condition for the safe use of PMDs

Study report:

• Regular updates of the detailed project timing, budget and work progress shall be provided to the FIA European Bureau over the duration of the project. All study results shall be summarised in a comprehensive report and in a presentable (electronic) format for publication. In addition, the contractor(s) shall include an executive summary in the report.
• The analysis and the underlying methodological approach need to be thoroughly explained and duly justified. The outputs will include a written report, accompanied by policy recommendations, which may be used by the FIA when interacting with policy makers.
• The final report shall be drafted in English. The contractor(s) shall be available for a short presentation of the intermediate results and the final results to the FIA European Bureau and its member Clubs and for the delivery of one presentation at a public event.

Tender procedure:

Interested parties are invited to make an offer for carrying out this study, considering the following timeframe (subject to changes, which, in any case, will be notified by the FIA European Bureau to all candidates):

• Application phase – 7 January 2022: deadline to submit a formal expression of interest, including a proposed methodology, a timeline for the research work, and the feedback loops between the selected party/parties and FIA European Bureau, as well as an itemised price quotation.
• Date of notification of the selected candidate(s): 30 January 2022.

Budget:

For the performance of the study described above, a total amount of up to 45,000 EUR (including taxes) is available to be allocated to the selected party/parties as follows:

• Forty per cent (40%) of the total amount will be transferred to the selected candidate once it has been officially appointed and within 30 days after the signature of the Services Agreement between the FIA European Bureau and the selected candidate.
• Sixty per cent (60%) of the total amount will be paid once the final report has been submitted and approved by the FIA European Bureau.
  The project will be invoiced at the latest by 31 December 2022.

Timing:

The study shall start upon notification of the selected party and be completed by June 2022 with the delivery of the final report. An interim report will be provided to the FIA European Bureau at a date to be commonly agreed.

The project duration may be extended following the parties’ agreement. FIA European Bureau shall be notified immediately in case of any roadblock or reason that might risk the project falling behind schedule or the planned budget being exceeded.

How to apply:

The declaration in Annex I needs to be returned to the FIA European Bureau dated and signed with the letter of candidacy to Diogo Pinto (dpinto@fia.com – phone: +32 2 282 08 12). 

Full terms of reference available here

For any question regarding this tender, please contact Diogo Pinto (dpinto@fia.com – phone: +32 2 282 08 12) 

About FIA Region I

Founded in 1904, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) brings together leading national motoring organisations from 146 countries worldwide and is the governing body for world motor sport. The FIA Region I office, based in Brussels, is a consumer body representing 103 mobility Motoring and Touring Clubs and their 36 million members from across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. See more: www.fiaregion1.com.

The FIA European Bureau aims:
1) to provide strong representation of European Member Club interests towards the European Union institutions – for example on road safety, consumer protection, environmental protection and the promotion of sustainable motoring;
2) to build up links and support the exchange of best practices between our Member Clubs across Europe, Africa and the Middle East, and;
3) to engage in new campaign activities together with Automobile Clubs throughout the region, such as the FIA European Bureau Better Deal campaign and the FIA Action for Road Safety campaign.