The two cities were the only ones in the Faro district that provided a network of shared scooters for rental - in Faro since February and in Portimão since July - but the companies that operated them have decided to suspend operations.


Luís Guerreiro, head of the subcontractor to ensure Voi’s logistics operation in Faro, told Lusa that the removal of the scooters was due to the “lack of profitability” of the operation and the need to “strengthen other markets”.


The other company operating in Faro and Portimão, the German Circ, also took its scooters off the streets, but a source of the company hired for logistics in the Algarve explained that they were “placed in Lisbon”, with no information “if they will return to the Algarve”.


On the streets of Faro, the 300 scooter parking places created by the council are now empty, but Sophie Matias, who is responsible for mobility in the municipality said she had established an agreement with the company Bolt, and another one still “in the pipeline”.


At the moment, this type of mobility is “a little experimental”, so both operators and cities are experimenting and Faro ended up being “a pilot too”.


In Portimão, Circ removed the 100 scooters after the trial period agreed between the council and the company ended in October. There is currently no company operating in the rental of scooters in Portimão.


The Swedish company Voi was the first in Portugal to provide electric scooters in more than one city, but announced at the end of October that it would stop operating in Portugal, mobilising the scooters to other European cities.