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Vexing vehicles: Leaders worldwide scramble to regulate e-scooters

Posted 10/22/19

New technologies almost always create new challenges and the increasingly visible electronic scooters are surely no exception.

From Peoria to Paris, communities are straining to keep up as more and more shared active transportation vehicles, or SATVs, hit streets across the Valley and around the world.

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Vexing vehicles: Leaders worldwide scramble to regulate e-scooters

Posted

New technologies almost always create new challenges and the increasingly visible electronic scooters are surely no exception.

From Peoria to Paris, communities are straining to keep up as more and more shared active transportation vehicles, or SATVs, hit streets across the Valley and around the world.

But as thousands of electric scooters, pedal bikes, electric bikes and dockless bike-shares join commuters and pedestrians on already crowded streets (and sidewalks) municipal and state leaders are drafting a patchwork of regulations in response to growing concerns.

Two main issues have emerged as communities implement the new transportation technologies are safety: public safety and clutter.

Some riders operate the personal rental vehicles under the influence or while otherwise distracted, while others ditch the micro-vehicles on sidewalks or in neighborhoods instead of returning them to designated areas and docking stations.

International concerns

In Berlin, officials reported 74 e-scooter accidents over the course of three months, including 65 drunk driving cases and 233 traffic violations in the city of 3.8 million, roughly the size of Los Angeles and more than twice the population of Phoenix.

The accidents resulted in 16 serious injuries and 43 minor injuries. Police officials stated spot checks of scooters users found drivers were “frequently intoxicated,” according to an Associated Press report.

Police also noted issuing violations for users carrying more than one rider, suing cell phones while driving and using unauthorized paths.

In Paris, government officials met in August with victims of scooter accidents as they considered new regulations in the city, where more than 20,000 of the personal vehicles have already been deployed.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo wants to limit scooter speeds to 12 mph in many areas and 5 mph in high-traffic pedestrian areas. She also endorsed limiting the number of licensed operators and capping the number of units permitted.

Other officials have called for driver’s license and insurance requirements, while stiff penalties may be imposed for speeding, including potential fines surpassing $1,500.

Officials in Britain took harder line from the start, dramatically limiting where e-scooters may operate.

They are currently banned from sidewalks and also roadways, since the personal vehicles are exempt from driver testing and licensing, insurance and taxes.

In Brussels, the capital of Belgium and the European Union, each of the city’s 19 municipalities has its own rules, with some imposing fines or speed limits, while others impose parking restrictions.

Local response

The Arizona Legislature took action on the issue during with Senate Bill 1398, sponsored by Sen. Tyler Pace (R—Dist. 25), which essentially lumps the personal vehicles in with traditional bicycles and exempts them from taxes, insurance and license requirements.

Gov. Doug Ducey signed the measure into the law on April 22 after it got unanimous approval from both the Arizona House and Senate.

The bill states: “… an operator of an electric bicycle is granted all the rights, privileges and duties of a person riding a bicycle. An electric bicycle is not subject to certificate of title, registration, vehicle license tax, driver licenses or vehicle insurance.”

Key provisions of the state bill include:

  • The scooter user is granted all the rights and privileges and subject to all the duties of a person riding a bicycle.
  • They are subject to the same statutory requirements and local regulations as a bicycle.
  • They are exempt to requirements relating to certificate of title, registration, [taxes], driver licenses or vehicle insurance.
  • Scooters may be used on bicycle and multiuse paths, unless prohibited by a local authority.

The bill did not, however, limit the power of local municipalities to regulate use of the devices.

Phoenix program

The city of Phoenix launched a six-month pilot program Sept. 16, which will bring up to 300 e-scooters to the downtown area, according to a release published on the city’s website.

“City Council unanimously approved a six-month pilot program for the use of e-scooters in Downtown Phoenix. The pilot will test the viability of e-scooters as a mobility option and has been designed to maximize safety and minimize sidewalk clutter,” the website states.

The council will reevaluate the program after three months and again after its conclusion. Permitted vendors can deploy the scooters only at specific locations, where they can be rented directly or through a mobile phone application.

The Phoenix rules include:

  • The scooters will have a use boundary area and no-ride zones and cannot operate outside of the boundary or in prohibited.
  • While not in use, the units must be parked in designated parking areas and cannot be left outside of the areas.
  • Scooters must be ridden on the street or within bike lanes — no riding is allowed on sidewalks.

Surprise program

The Surprise City Council approved their own pilot program Oct. 1 to bring e-scooters and e-bikes to a small part of that city.

Starting Friday, Nov. 1, residents will see electric scooters only from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. and mostly limited to the community’s City Center square mile, which is bounded by Litchfield Road, Bullard Avenue, Bell Road and Greenway Road.

It will cost any vendor $5,000 to operate for six months, plus a cost of $2.50 a month for each e-scooter or e-bike in circulation.

The program will allow an unlimited number of vendors to contract with the city to deploy a total of 100 of the SATVs.

Under Surprise’s rules, only adults can ride the vehicles — with the maximum speed set at 12 miles per hour for e-scooters and 20 miles per hour for e-bikes.

The regulations call for any illegally parked vehicle to be removed within two hours of notice. If a vehicle poses a risk, city staffers will remove it for a $25 fee to the vendor.

The boundary, which encompasses Surprise City Center, Surprise Stadium and major commercial centers, will be enforced with geofencing technology, allow them to operate only in the designated areas.

If a rider goes outside the boundary, the vehicle will automatically slow or stop.

Peoria rules

City of Peoria as of August were working on a draft ordinance to address the emergent mode of transportation.

The ordinance will be similar to traffic-control laws regarding bikes, except it will focus on e-scooters.

The law will likely cover staging areas, speeds and appropriate places for riding scooters, such as sidewalks, streets and bike lanes, as well as areas of town permissible to ride or areas not permitted, according to city officials.

The council is expected to consider the draft ordinance during the fall; no measure has been presented for public hearing yet.

Peoria Public Works Director Kevin Burke said e-scooter technology is here and can serve as an important mode of transportation, but it also needs to be regulated.

Discussion of a possible e-scooter ordinance is the present-day version of incorporating bicycles into the transportation code, he said.

“Peoria, like most of its municipal counterparts across the Valley and U.S. also recognize that unregulated e-scooters can create hazards for riders, pedestrians and motorists. Likewise, the staging, storage or disposition of scooters can have a detrimental impact on accessibility and aesthetics, thus, warranting management,” Mr. Burke said.

False start

About a year ago, Santa Monica-based tech start-up Bird took out a business license in Peoria and launched an on-demand rental service for the vehicles and almost overnight the technology descended upon the city with little to no regulation.

The invasion left residents excited over the new technology as an alternative form of transportation as well as concerned about safety, scooters blocking sidewalks and being left on private property, as well as creating blight throughout the city.

Peoria staff met with Bird and worked out a 120-day pilot program and a 90-day operating agreement approved by city council on Dec. 4, 2018.

However, the plans ended when a proposed temporary contract with the electric scooter company could not be finalized in a way that would protect the city and its taxpayers, officials said.

City spokeswoman Kristina Perez said the new law will apply to all scooter companies and likely private scooters, such as personally owned scooters, and is intended to regulate within the parameters allowed by the state statute passed earlier this year.

Editor's Note: Surprise Independent Editor Jason Stone and Peoria Independent Editor Phil Haldiman contributed to this story.