From 2025, a new environmental zone will be set up within the heart of Stockholm, prohibiting petrol and diesel-fuelled cars. This will be achieved by instituting a new environmental, low-emission zone which will cover a 20 block area in the downtown district, including prominent shopping streets and busy office areas.
The primary objective of this new and drastic action is unsurprising; it aims to foster a cleaner, quieter, and healthier atmosphere in the Swedish capital, by prioritizing the well-being of both residents and visitors.
The planned environmental zone falls within the area formed by Kungsgatan, Birger Jarlsgatan, Hamngatan and Sveavägen, and the entrance to the Klaratunnel via Mäster Samuelsgatan is also part of the planned zone.
The plan, which was proposed by the Green Party in the city council, aims to establish Zone type 3, which is considered the strictest according to Swedish standards, meaning minimal exceptions for a return to the emissions produced by cars will be permitted. It is expected to make the capital a compelling example for other Swedish cities to follow.
In practical terms, only fully electric vehicles will be permitted to operate within the zone limits. However, certain exceptions will be granted to bigger plug-in hybrid vans, ambulances, police vehicles, and vehicles operated by individuals with documented disabilities.
Furthermore, Reuters reported that Green Party officials have indicated a plan to gradually expand the zone to encompass more of Stockholm.
As expected, this abrupt and drastic shift, along with the short timeline for implementation, is not met with unanimous approval regardless of attitudes towards ‘going green’. Private transportation companies, including taxi operators, assert that these changes are being rushed, citing insufficient availability of EV charging points in the city, making such a transition currently unfeasible.
Residents of the Swedish town of Enköping are being encouraged to contribute to the maintenance of the local cycle-path infrastructure, in a novel way – by playing a mobile game. Anyone with a mobile phone, a bike and handlebar-mounted phone holder can download a free and simple-to-use app, and by playing help to provide important information to the municipality’s traffic planning department.
To develop the scheme, Enköping’s authorities teamed up with Crowdsorsa, a Finnish startup software company, who developed a smartphone game where virtual fruits and berries, which are worth actual money, can be collected by filming the cycling paths. Enköping has 110km of cycling paths for players to map, with each kilometre featuring collectable objects worth approximately SEK 20 (about 1.88 euros).
The data collected is analysed by an AI model to identify damage to the cycle path, and then will be used to plan maintenance of the network.
Explaining how the game works, Crowdsorsa CEO Toni Paju said: “The first user to collect an item is rewarded for it, then it disappears from everyone’s maps in real time. This makes the survey well-organized and shows users where data has not yet been collected.”
Maurizio Freddo, traffic planner at Enköping municipality, noted the benefits both for the town’s authorities and local residents: “The project is important for us as we can finally get a good basis to see in a methodical way how we should maintain our walking and cycling paths. It gives us a better idea of what we should prioritize. We also believe that this will be a good way to engage citizens in Enköping municipality to get out and experience our walking and cycling paths.”
Comments Off on CAKE closes $60 million fundraising
Scaling from successful global start-up towards vehicle industry operator.
CAKE, the Swedish manufacturer of lightweight electric performance motorcycles, scooters and mopeds today announces that CAKE’s latest round of fundraising surpassed expectations and closed at $60M. The fundraising comprises convertible notes of $14M and a $46M financing round. The financing round was anchored by Swedish pension fund AMF, investing alongside a handful of new investors and with strong support from current shareholders including Creandum and Headline, who are committed to continue to support the company on its continued growth journey.
“We are in the process of implementing initiatives to scale the business, structuring and laying the base for rapid growth. Aside from new product platforms, like the new and compact Makka expanding the user base, within B2C as well as B2B, CAKE is setting up manufacturing facilities in Europe, North America and Asia for sustainability and efficiency reasons, as we speak.
Furthermore, CAKE Sites including showrooms, retail and service will start popping up in major cities, starting this fall.
We knew we were entering a space with increasingly strong tailwinds when we got started back in 2016, but we couldn’t dream of the pace in which things are now happening, for the good of people, planet and business.” says Stefan Ytterborn, Founder & CEO of CAKE.
Patricia Hedelius, Portfolio Manager at AMF, had this to say about the new funding:
“We appreciate the opportunity to invest in one of Sweden’s most interesting companies within the field of electrification at this rather early stage. CAKE’s drive and go-ahead spirit is impressive, as is the ambitious plan to grow the company and offer sustainable transportation. The products can be important in the transition to a more sustainable society, and CAKE’s innovative design and solid custom focus has contributed to a strong market interest.”
CAKE has had a flying global start since it was introduced in 2018, with series production bikes in the market from the spring of 2019. With the focus on establishing a new category of light, quiet and clean electric motorcycles, with performance and durability being the main objectives, the company continues to lead towards extended life cycles, efficiency and sustainable initiatives.
“All of us working with Cake are proud of the development of the company. We are also happy to welcome our new and important investors. Together we can take a leap in developing the future for clean mobility.” says Conny Carlsson, chairman of the board at CAKE.
Staffan Helgesson, General Partner at Creandum Advisor, continues:
“Cake’s obsession with creating a superior user experience has been ingrained in the company’s DNA from day one and is something we can fully identify with. We are very happy to continue to support the team for the long term in their ambition to become the category leader in the premium two wheeler electric vehicle segment.”
SEB Corporate Finance Growth acted as sole financial advisor and Hansen Law acted as legal advisor to CAKE in relation to the capital raising. Questions will be answered by: Stefan Ytterborn, CEO and founder, stefan@ridecake.com, +46 72 539 54 50
about CAKE
CAKE is a Swedish company with a clear mission to inspire towards a zero-emission society, by combining excitement and responsibility in its development of light, quiet, and clean high-performance electric off-road motorcycles. Its first model, the Kalk, debuted at Denver’s OR and Munich’s ISPO shows in January 2018 and has received numerous accolades, including the 2019 and 2020 Red Dot Design Award, IF Design Award, Automotive Brand Contest Award, and “Best in Show” designation by several outdoor industry publications. In 2019, CAKE launched the Kalk&, a street-legal motorcycle as well as Ösa+ and Ösa Lite, a utility platform with an integrated power station and off-road capabilities, which extended their award-winning streak. Kalk INK debuted in March 2020, with the street-legal Kalk INK SL entering the line in April 2020. And CAKE expanded into the race scene in November 2020, launching the Kalk OR Race and Kalk INK Race. In September 2021, CAKE released a convenient and light city moped, the Makka, expanding the user matrix further.
It’s all about the outdoors. Explore with respect. Learn more about CAKE at ridecake.com.
About AMF
With SEK 800 billion in assets managed for approximately 4 million customers, AMF is one of Sweden’s leading pension companies and one of the largest owners on Nasdaq OMX Nordic Stockholm. AMF is a limited liability life insurance company that is owned equally by the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO) and the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise and operated on mutual principles, entailing that all profits are returned to the customers.
About about Creandum
Creandum is a leading European early-stage venture capital firm. Since 2003, Creandum has backed Europe’s most ambitious tech companies from seed to exit across a wide range of industries. Creandum’s advisory teams are based in Stockholm, Berlin, London, and San Francisco. With extensive operational expertise, the teams offer comprehensive support to the funds’ portfolio of more than 100 companies, including some of Europe’s most successful tech companies such as Spotify, iZettle, Klarna, Kahoot!, Trade Republic and Small Giant Games. Learn more at creandum.com.
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