An electric scooter manufacturer says it’s going to fit artificial engine noise to the micro mobility vehicles to improve safety for pedestrians around them.

The Times reports that audible alerts will be emitted from battery-powered scooters after concerns that pedestrians can be in danger from fast moving silent vehicles on pavements.

It says Tier Mobility, which operates e-scooters in York and 80 other cities worldwide, will add the noise to its vehicles next year. Research led by the Thomas Pocklington Trust, the charity for blind and partially sighted people, will be carried out to design the warnings and establish when they should be employed. The sound is likely to be some sort of electronically generated engine noise or a constant pulse.

“E-scooters offer lots of benefits to UK cities but they must be introduced in a considered way, working in harmony with local communities and accounting for the concerns of people with visual impairment,” Fred Jones, Tier’s UK general manager, told the paper.