Forest, London’s most affordable and sustainable e-bike operator, has taken part in a “Simulation Spectacles” walk and vision awareness session led by the London Sight Loss Council (SLC).

On Friday 26th September, members of the Forest team – including policy, people and customer service teams were guided through busy areas of London wearing simulation spectacles (‘sim specs’) which simulate different eye conditions.

The aim of the exercise was to improve awareness of what blind and partially sighted members of the public are experiencing day to day and help Forest tangibly improve its service to address these issues. The Forest team also heard from Sight Loss Council member, Haren Thillainathan, who shared his experiences living in London as a visually impaired person and the role that e-bike operators have in improving this experience.

Forest has long been committed to ensuring that usage of its service does not come at the expense of non-users, especially those who are blind and partially sighted.

Earlier this year, Forest signed the Sight Loss Council’s e-bike charter, calling for operators, local authorities and governing bodies to commit to six key principles to ensure the safety of blind and partially sighted pedestrians who had voiced concerns around the impact of e-bikes and e-scooters on the streets.

Furthermore, as a signatory of the charter, Forest has explored ways to minimise street obstacles. This includes rolling out greater numbers of dedicated parking bays located on the carriageway rather than footways for users to park their e-bikes safely. Forest has also maintained a dedicated phone line and displayed clear QR codes for people to report obstructive bikes simply and quickly.

Alex Berwin, Head of Policy at Forest, said: “We are hugely grateful to the Sight Loss Council for coming in to meet the Forest team and helping us to better understand the lived experience of blind and partially sighted people.

“Our partnership with the Council – and our commitments to its e-bike charter – remain central to our operations across London. While we have certainly made progress in improving our operations so that it benefits the whole community, particularly non-users with accessibility needs, we know more needs to be done. We look forward to continuing our relationship with the Sight Loss Council as we improve on and build an inclusive service across the capital.”

Haren Thillainathan, SW London SLC member, said: “It was good to contribute to the sim spec walk with Forest’s team and share my lived experience of the challenges I face as a blind resident, commuting and navigating London’s streets with my guide dog.

“It was evident that the participants were receptive and gained a greater appreciation of the problems poorly parked and abandoned e-bikes pose every day to blind and partially sighted people.

“I am encouraged that the issues we raised will help Forest improve its e-bike operations, benefitting VI pedestrians as well as other pedestrians across the capital.”