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‘Ban cars from Stockholm and have Sweden fund cycle taxis’

Swedes are generally considered an environmentally conscious bunch, but could a Scotsman in Stockholm make them even more eco-friendly?

Published: 13 June 2016 06:59 CEST
'Ban cars from Stockholm and have Sweden fund cycle taxis'
Entrepreneur Neil Fraser thinks he can help make Stockholm greener. Photo: Neil Fraser

That’s exactly what Edinburgh native Neil Fraser is hoping to achieve with his new pedicabs company, Hej Hej. The Scot thinks he has found the solution to both pollution and traffic gridlock in the Swedish capital. And his ambitions are big.

“In the future I’d say that cycle taxis should take over. Make the whole city sustainable, ban cars from the city centre, and have the state fund cycle taxis instead,” he says.

“It’s totally essential. We have to do something about climate change, pollution coming from cities. Cycle taxis can get around quicker than cars and cabs, and it’s just crazy that in a modern day city, which Stockholm presents itself as, that you still have gridlock in the city centre.”

Fraser relocated to Sweden five years ago with his Swedish partner. Though he initially found employment in teaching, the Scot had previous experience of working in both the tourism sector and with environmental NGOs. His passion for the environment never left him, and one day, he had a eureka moment.

“I was sitting, bored out of my mind in an office in Slussen (a busy transport hub near Stockholm's ferry port), ironically enough on an employment course where they were trying to help me find a new career,” he explains. “I saw these poor people lugging their crates of beer and suitcases to the port, and I thought there should be a better system to get them back to their boats.”

“Then it hit me: cycle taxis. I knew about tourism, and Stockholm is getting more and more tourists every year, so it seemed like a good time to tap into the market.”


Hej Hej Stockholm director Neil Fraser. Photo: Neil Fraser

The name ‘Hej Hej’ (Swedish for hello) was devised as a local take on the term ‘tuk-tuk’, which is used to describe three-wheeled motorized taxis popular among tourists in countries like Thailand. Fraser quickly realized that his own three-wheelers would not only be well-placed to take advantage of the density of tourists in Stockholm, but that they could also appeal to a local Swedish emphasis on sustainable living.

“A lot of companies in Sweden are taking sustainability quite seriously,” he observes. “By advertising on the bikes we offer them a chance to show that they walk the walk by getting their message out in a healthy, environmental way.”

With both his idea locked in and a niche found, the entrepreneur was off to a good start, but the process of launching the company wasn’t always straightforward. Surprisingly, he found some of the steps to be more difficult than they were back in his native Scotland.

“If I was to compare it to Scotland I’d say it’s slightly easier to open a business in Scotland. There they fall over themselves to help you with money and advice. I found it harder here to do that,” he says.

“In Scotland you get very specific advice. With tourism we got given a mentor who knew everything about tourism. She helped us with all the connections. We really had our hands held through the process of setting up a business.”

“Here in Sweden it wasn’t as specific. A lot of it relies on you being able to network and knowing your own industry, the people within it.”


A Hej Hej taxi out for a spin in Stockholm. Photo: Neil Fraser

Support may not have been as specific as the environmentalist would have liked, but Stockholm’s well-developed cycle infrastructure on the other hand seemed tailor-made for a company like his from day one.

“Compared to Edinburgh it’s flat as a pancake here. It has cycle lanes, it has a culture of cycling, fit and healthy people,” he notes. “It’s just not everyone has cottoned on to the potential of this yet. We’re the wee guys, we only have four cabs and have just started, but we have big ambitions to help Stockholm become more sustainable.”

As anyone who has traversed Stockholm’s many cycle lanes will attest, the high flow of traffic on two wheels means riders can be ruthless. Despite that, Fraser says the city’s cyclists have reacted positively to his venture.

“The one concern was how the many cyclists in Stockholm would react to a slightly bigger machine suddenly blocking their way,” he admits. “But we’ve had nothing but positive comments.”

“People saying ‘good for you guys, you have as much right to be in the cycle lanes as we do’. At the nighttime when we take them round the bars Stockholmers think it’s a great idea too. That’s really helped.”


The pedicabs are a shade bigger than an average bike. Photo: Neil Fraser

With the locals apparently on side, Fraser has already won a major battle. To fulfill his ultimate goal however, he will need to convince a far tougher group: politicians.

“I’d love to see the Stockholm municipality recognizing the cabs as part of the transport network and as a viable option for people travelling between meetings,” he says.

“I’d love for it to be an established feature of the transport network. We fill the gap between taxi and bus. I think there’s a real value in that. Real potential.”

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READER INSIGHTS

How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who’ve been there, done that

The Swedish job market poses unique challenges for newcomers. The Local's readers share their best tips for cracking the career code.

Published: 10 April 2024 11:32 CEST
Updated: 13 April 2024 15:50 CEST
How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who've been there, done that

Network, network, network!

A statistic that often gets tossed around is that seven out of ten jobs in Sweden are obtained through personal connections, and there’s no doubt that a good network is crucial to your job hunt, making the labour market extra challenging for newcomers to the country.

In fact, networking was the main tip mentioned by The Local’s readers.

“The job market is quite hot in Sweden, and talent is in short supply. People hiring do not have a lot of time to find the right talent, and tips from friends, colleagues and former colleagues are the way to first, find out organisations are hiring, and secondly, get your CV on the short list,” said Kyle, a Canadian reader who works in innovation management in Gothenburg.

“If you are going for a major employer like Volvo, network gets you in the door, as HR does not have much to do with hiring… the hiring managers do all of it and have no time, due to the insane number of consensus meetings. If you are looking for smaller organisations, they have even less time to find people, and networking is their primary way to find talent,” he added.

NETWORKING IN SWEDEN:

Some of the networking tips readers mentioned were going to job fairs, getting an internship to help you establish connections in your preferred field, joining clubs (this could be anything from your local gardening association to meetups for coders, but focus on clubs that may be popular among people working in your chosen field), and drawing on your organic network of friends, neighbours and others.

Don’t neglect the groundwork

The saying “dress for the job you want, not the job you have” is getting worn out (and people may look at you funny if you turn up to interviews in a Batman suit), but there’s truth to the notion of making sure you know what you want – and preparing for it.

In other words, don’t wait for a job ad to appear before you start to customise your CV and figure out what skill set you need. Create your CV now so that you’re ready to tweak it to your dream job – you could even have a general look at job ads in your field to see what requirements are needed. And don’t forget to spruce up your LinkedIn profile so that it fits with your career goals.

“I believe that several factors contribute to successfully landing a desirable job in Sweden. It’s essential to prepare to meet the requirements beyond just having a university degree. Many individuals realise these requirements only after completing their studies when they start searching for a job, which can be too late,” said Adnan Aslam from Pakistan, who works as a food inspector.

“I recommend identifying the job advertisements for positions you aspire to hold in the future and then preparing for those requirements during your studies. For me, acquiring a basic level of proficiency in the Swedish language and obtaining a Swedish driving licence were crucial. I pursued these goals during my studies and was able to secure a desirable job before graduating,” he added.

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Felipe Cabral even has a GPT assistant trained on his own CVs and old cover letters, and said the set-up only takes ten minutes if you already have your documents. “With that in place, you can give instructions like: Read this job description and create a tailored version of my CV and letter for it. (…) Remember to always review and ask it not to create data aside from your documents.”

Be flexible and ready to adapt

Moving to a new place inevitably means having to learn not just the practicalities such as how to write a CV or which websites to use to look for job openings, but also learning how to navigate a new culture with all its unspoken expectations.

Swedish workplaces are generally less hierarchical than many other countries, but that doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want whenever you want without anyone raising an eyebrow. Swedes are usually direct, but be careful of being too abrasive or boastful: raising your voice, even during a spirited argument, or banging your own drum to show off your skills may not go down well.

“Talk, deliberate, complain like a Swede and you’ll come across like you know what the job entails, so your trustworthiness increases,” said an Indian data analyst who preferred to remain anonymous.

“Office politics are just as strong in Sweden as anywhere else. The flat hierarchy is deceiving as social hierarchy is enforced quite a bit in that lack of formal hierarchy. Take your time in learning these dynamics wherever you work before revealing your talent and capabilities. Expect those internal politics to happen, and they won’t hurt so much when they do,” said Kyle, the Canadian reader in Gothenburg.

This article about Swedish office politics may be useful.

Stay true to yourself

Adapting to your surroundings is one thing. Completely changing who you are is another.

For one thing, your happiness is as important as your career progression, and for another, your foreignness need not be an impediment: it’s also a skill that sets you apart from the rest. It means you have unique experience, and also, in the right setting, provides an opportunity to sometimes violate those social rules we mentioned above, because people assume you will, anyway.

“Trust is key. Build trust in your network, work with integrity. It’s OK to violate jantelagen if you are maintaining integrity. Sometimes your outsider and more honest/open opinion will burn bridges, especially those that may feel threatened by talent. But it will build trust with other colleagues who see it as brave and more trustworthy to work with,” said Kyle from Canada.

Hunker down for the long haul

We don’t want to scare you, because there are plenty of examples of people who quickly find their dream job in Sweden and settle into their new workplace, enjoying perks such as long summer holidays, generous parental leave and the famous work-life balance.

But if you do find it tougher than you expected: know that you’re not alone.

Several readers who responded to the survey said they were still trying to find a job in Sweden.

“I found jobs all over Europe but not here. They say they have a lack of experienced senior engineers but the don’t seem to be doing much to solve this,” said a Brazilian in Gothenburg.

A reader from Bangladesh said she was “at a loss” as to how to make a career change from her current AI role in Stockholm, despite many years of experience as an IT project manager.

“Over the past 18 months, I’ve submitted over 600 applications to various organisations. Unfortunately, despite being overqualified for some positions, I’ve faced rejections at every turn, from both large and small companies. The job market here, especially for foreign-born women, feels overwhelmingly challenging,” she said, adding that the struggle had impacted her mental health.

The Local has on several occasions reported on foreign residents’ struggle to get a foot on the Swedish job ladder, with many facing hurdles such as employers’ unfamiliarity with international degrees, discrimination, or a lack of network that can provide paths into a company.

So during the job hunt, don’t forget to care for yourself. Share your concerns with fellow job-seekers, ask for help and join networking groups – this is good not just for creating new contacts, but also in terms of your social well-being and meeting people who are in a similar situation.

And finally, as one British reader in Stockholm advised, keep looking: “Be open-minded with the opportunities that present themselves. It isn’t an easy market to enter and doesn’t feel inclusive.” But he added, “don’t give up”.

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