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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-MATC-2019-02-25 MOBILITY, ACCESSIBILITY AND TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION MINUTES PRESENT: Chair Lerner Commissioners (7) Barden, Brylinsky, Lyczko, Roberts, Chang, Powers, Brouwer OTHERS PRESENT: Common Council Liaison - Nguyen Information Management Specialist - Myers Lime Bike Representative – Goodmark EXCUSED: CC Liaison McGonigal Commissioner Parkes Approval of the January 28, 2019 Mobility, Accessibility and Transportation Commission Meeting Minutes- Resolution By Commissioner Lyzcko: Seconded by Commissioner Powers RESOLVED, That the minutes of the January 28, 2019 Mobility, Accessibility, and Transportation Commission be approved as published. Carried Unanimously Statements From the Public: Dave Nutter, City of Ithaca, voiced his concerns about the use of e-scooters in the City of Ithaca, particularly concerning the sharing of sidewalks and stated that he does not support them. E-Scooters: Commissioners Barden and Powers provided a summary of their findings related to their research on the use of e-scooters in cities similar in size to Ithaca. They provided overview of the results of their research through a PowerPoint presentation (summary will be attached to minutes). Commissioner Barden stated that they hoped at the end of the presentation this evening that members of Matcom might be able to provide a recommendation regarding bringing e-scooters to the City that they could take to the March Planning and Economic Development Committee meeting for further review and discussion. After the presentation, there was opportunity for questions and discussion of the topic. Concerns, things to think about and additional data needs were shared as follows: Concerns: Education of public must be a priority prior to the introduction of e-scooters Date: February 25, 2019 Time: 6:00 PM Location: Common Council Chambers, 3rd Floor, City Hall Public Safety and Information Commission February 25, 2019 2 Safety on sidewalks for pedestrians and maintaining access for everyone. City not responsible for making LimeBike successful and profitable. A memorandum of understanding must be in place prior to the introduction of e-scooters and should be for a specific period of time only and include language about idemnification of the City for any liability due to their use.. Data Needed: Answers to questions regarding insurance and the city liability Additional information from NYS V & T law on the use of e-scooters What impact on tourism do e-scooters have Information from other cities on usage rates for e-bikes versus e-scooters Things to Think About: Conduct a pilot study on the use of e-scooters Provide information on the pros and cons of e-scooters Job and transportation opportunities that e-scooters might provide Be proactive and accept this new transportation option as e-scooters are being introduced and used around the country and the world Impact of e-scooters with some of Ithaca’s large festivals The creation of jobs and revenue from the use of e-scooters and e-bicycles in the City of Ithaca Response from Lime Bike Representative Jeff Goodmark Affordability and accessibility is their goal Consumers choose e-scooters over bikes More scooters than bikes all over United States as well as different countries Once you have the app it works anywhere in the world Lime Bikes has proven they can take care of the program and provide jobs locally They plan to honor the current three year memorandum of understanding with the City and they would not put out scooters without a memorandum of understanding in place They have new “Generation 3” scooters and all of the use and design concerns raised have been addressed in the re-design of the new scooters, which are specifically designed for use in cities They do not have a requirement for a driver’s license because they don’t want to exclude someone from using an e-scooter that would provide transportation for them to a job They have exclusive messages about no riding on sidewalks that come up each time scooters are accessed prior to use They fully support the need for public education and are willing to do any type of educational events leading up to the launch with free helmets to everyone on launch weekend – education is the key to success Their insurance covers every user and indemnifies the City of Ithaca New braking system on e-scooters allows for full control Commissioners Barden and Powers will provide a final summary for review and discussion at the March Matcom meeting. Public Safety and Information Commission February 25, 2019 3 Commissioner Barden and CC Liaison Nguyen left the meeting at 7:20 p.m. CC Liaison Nguyen will e-mail his liaison report to Matcom members. Chair’s Report: Assignment of Vice Chair for March Matcom meeting – Commissioner Brouwer Pedestrian Snow and Ice Removal: Chair Lerner explained that enforcement plays a key role in the removal of snow and ice from sidewalks. Will the city do anything about snow removal that costs money? He will talk with CC Liaison Nguyen tomorrow and hopes that in due course there will be a new charge to Matcom about this topic that is also tied into appropriate staff resources. Pedestrian Snow Removal Public Input: Commissioner Chang reported that he and Commissioner Brouwer met to sketch out a timeline so this project can be completed by May for a presentation for Matcom only. They plan to meet with one of the members of the Public Safety and Information commission and they also want to meet with the City Clerk to discuss what is available as far as doing a survey and what city resources might be available. Commissioner Roberts stated, for the record, that he wanted to point out that cities have an obligation to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to provide access to city infrastructure year round. That is how he thinks about this issue. He hasn’t seen many lawsuits against municipalities for failure to clear sidewalks, he has seen lawsuits about sidewalks, parking, and accessibility. He hopes that the City understands that regardless of citizen input and feedback that it has to, at some point, make a decision as to how it is going to clear sidewalks during storms. It’s a legal issue not a code issue or “wouldn’t it be nice thing”. Discussion followed on the best way to reach as many residents as possible with the survey in order to have as much input as possible. It was noted that it will be important to identify responses form actual city of Ithaca residents as opposed to non-residents. Chair Lerner stated and related to Commissioner Roberts comments that the thing that is clear to him is that there is a sidewalk snow removal law that requires owners to clear to the curb line and public works to clear to street - that leaves a barrier just beyond the curb line. Under the current law, no one has responsibility for clearing the end of the crosswalks. He will be looking at everything that comes in in that framework since that is one of the central issues to solve. DPW Parking Analysis: Commissioner Lyzcko explained that currently work is underway on the third draft request for quotes (RFQ) for the hiring of a consultant to conduct the parking study. They need to meet with staff about the RFQ and getting information on the stakeholder group that will participate in the study. That process is moving slow. The vision of the study is that the parking will address the population of transient, workforce and visitors and include park and ride options from private parking lots around the city. Discussion followed on the floor about how removal of the Green Street parking garage will affect parking in other garages and around the City. Commission members Public Safety and Information Commission February 25, 2019 4 encouraged Commissioner Lyzcko to make sure that a large part of the RFQ includes the engagement of the public and as many different stakeholder groups as possible. Commissioner Lyzcko stated that she and Commissioner Parkes will need assistance in having the right questions for the meetings on parking. ADA Issues: Commissioner Roberts explained that he, Commissioner Brylinsky and Chair Lerner met will be setting up a meeting with former Disability Advisory Council to insure that the other three commissions consider ADA issues in each of their meetings and topics. Commissioner Brylinsky reported that rescheduling the ADA training has been a challenge. The trainer provided her with some dates for the end of April and beginning of May. More information to come in the near future. Future Topics: March – presentation from TCAT during first half of meeting and perhaps work in drafting questions for the sidewalk snow removal survey April – no big presentation and more time for each of the four current topics May – sidewalk snow removal June - Commissioner Roberts suggested a discussion about how the City budget process work and/or meeting with someone from the Chamberlain’s office to discuss parking. Meeting Wrap-Up: The next Matcom meeting will be March 25, 2019 Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 8:10 pm Respectfully submitted, Sarah L. Myers, Information Management Specialist Compilation of e-Scooter Research Prepared for the Ithaca PEDC and Common Council Sarah Barden and Megan Powers Members, Mobility Accessibility, and Transportation Commission Created 5 February 2019 Revised 6 March 2019 Sarah Barden and Megan Powers (SB/MP. “we”) have done this research on behalf of the Mobility, Accessibility, and Transportation Commission (MATCom) at the request of the Planning and Economic Development Committee (PEDC). We presented our draft report and findings to MATCom, which has reviewed and commented on the evolving report and has approved its moving forward to PEDC for review on its merits. Page 1 Executive Summary 2 Methodology 3 Pros and Cons of E-Scooter Sharing 3 Pros of E-Scooter Sharing 3 Cons of E-Scooter Sharing 4 Safety 4 Fatalities 4 Injuries 4 Additional Comments about Safety 5 Insurance and Liability 6 Equitable Ridership 7 Geography 7 E-Scooter Sharing in Other Cities 8 Harrisonburg, VA 8 Memphis, TN 9 Providence, RI 10 St. Paul, MN 10 Portland, OR 11 Feedback from City Departments 11 City Clerk 12 Engineering 12 Fire Department 12 Planning and Economic Development 12 City Attorney 13 Police Department 13 Feedback from Lime 13 New York State Law 13 NACTO Guidelines 14 Conclusion 14 Page 2 Executive Summary The City of Ithaca Planning and Economic Development Committee (PEDC) asked the Mobility, Accessibility, and Transportation Commission (MATCom) to research several facets of e- scooter implementation to help the City of Ithaca determine whether and how to launch an e- scooter sharing pilot program. This research was undertaken by Sarah Barden and Megan Powers. Given our research, we believe e-scooters represent an exciting opportunity for the City of Ithaca and that it is in Ithaca’s best interest to establish a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for an e-scooter pilot program beginning in Spring 2019. Creating a pilot program for e- scooter sharing allows Ithaca to observe how e-scooter sharing impacts Ithaca and to collect ridership data without tying the city to a permanent decision. Until e-scooter riding in Ithaca is well understood, we believe establishing an exclusive agreement with one e-scooter provider is reasonable. The basics of a dockless e-scooter sharing program typically include: ● Access to e-scooters via a smartphone app, unless using the LimeAcess program (see Equitable Ridership for more details). ● In-app User Agreement, education, and safety instructions. ● A daily curfew (as determined by the municipality) after which all e-scooters are turned off and removed from city streets; during this time they are re-charged. ● A minimum age requirement of 18. Any MOU regarding e-scooters should follow the guidelines outlined by NACTO and should establish clear regulations regarding e-scooter usage, including points listed below. ● Inclusion of insurance and indemnification clauses ● Establishment of a maximum e-scooter speed of 15 mph ● Establishment of fees or payments made to Ithaca by the e-scooter provider Ithaca should consider requiring Lime to maintain a minimum fleet of bicycles along with the e- scooter program to serve the youth and underprivileged population. Even with a detailed MOU, Ithaca should expect challenges with an e-scooter program. Citizens and tourists will ride e-scooters illegally on the sidewalks, and residents will express concern about both improper ridership and lack of enforcement. Further, some e-scooters will be parked inappropriately, possibly impacting ADA or rescue access. Ithaca can address these concerns proactively by creating education initiatives, leveraging local interested NGOs, and formally documenting expectations with Lime. All the cities we interviewed faced some challenges in implementing their e-scooter programs, but all have chosen to renew the programs for the next year. Page 3 Methodology Sarah Barden and Megan Powers have spoken with representatives from several cities to learn how these municipalities have approached e-scooter sharing and what challenges they have faced. We have also researched best practices for e-scooter implementation. We have shared our initial findings with several city departments (City Clerk, Engineering, Planning and Economic Development, and Fire) and collected their feedback. Finally, we have spoken with Jeff Goodmark, local Operations Manager for Lime, to understand Lime’s hopes and expectations for an e-scooter program in Ithaca. Our findings are summarized in the following sections. Pros and Cons of E-Scooter Sharing E-scooters provide a new transportation option for residents and tourists, but they also have drawbacks. See also data from ● “The State of E-Scooter Sharing in United States Cities” by Sarah M. Kaufman and Luke Buttenwieser at Wagner NYU’s Rudin Center of Transportation (https://wagner.nyu.edu/files/faculty/publications/Rudin_ScooterShare_Aug2018_0.pdf) ● “E-Scooter Scenarios: Evaluating the Potential Mobility Benefits of Shared Dockless E- Scooters in Chicago” by C. Scott Smith and Joseph P. Schweiterman of DePaul University’s Chaddick Institute (https://las.depaul.edu/centers-and-institutes/chaddick- institute-for-metropolitan-development/research-and-publications/Documents/E- ScooterScenariosMicroMobilityStudy_FINAL_20181212.pdf) ● The e-scooter pilot program report from Portland Bureau of Transportation in Portland, OR (https://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/article/709719). Pros of E-Scooter Sharing ● E-scooters help solve the “last-mile” problem, giving people an easy option to make a trip that is too long for a comfortable walk but too short for a car ride. In specific, the DePaul study found e-scooters were a strong, cost-efficient, time-competitive alternative to cars for trips between 0.5 and 2 miles. ● E-scooters have a smaller parking footprint than bicycles or automobiles. ● E-scooters require little effort or skill to ride, especially compared to bicycles. ● E-scooters can provide a reliable means of transportation for those who cannot use or afford a car. This, in turn, can have a positive impact on job accessibility and business commuting. ● E-scooters have the potential to make jobs more accessible compared to public transit or walking alone. For example, DePaul’s study found this to be true for 16% of jobs in their study area. ● E-scooters can replace cars, especially among tourists. In Portland, 34% of residents and 48% of tourists reported choosing to take a scooter rather than a personal vehicle or taxi, Uber, or Lyft ride. Page 4 Cons of E-Scooter Sharing ● E-scooters are a new technology. Cities and residents must learn how to integrate them into daily living while their risks are not yet understood. ● E-scooters are often used on sidewalks, increasing pedestrian discomfort and frustrating those who would like to see sidewalk riding regulations enforced. ● E-scooters that are parked improperly can cause accessibility concerns. ● E-scooters bring some people a perception of danger and risk. The studies needed to assess the risk have not yet been completed. A careful evaluation of bike-sharing and e- scooter-sharing statistics would reveal the relative risks, but this has not been done. ● E-scooters may be more sensitive to irregular pavement than bicycles. Because of their bigger wheels, bicycles tend to be more stable across bad pavement than e-scooters. Note: the diameter of the Lime-S Gen 3.0 e-scooter is 10 inches, while the diameter of a toddler’s balance bike is 12 inches. ● E-scooters are less visible than Lime bicycles. They can be less visible than general bicycles because of their smaller profile, but they also have front and rear lights. Safety Like bicycles and other small transportation devices, e-scooters are associated with safety risks. To date, few extensive studies have been completed regarding e-scooter safety, and results are mixed. Most evidence suggests that the injury risk associated with e-scooter usage is comparable to that of bicycle usage. Fatalities There have been two fatalities associated with e-scooter sharing programs in the United States. At the time these fatalities occurred, there had been approximately 21 million rides on e- scooters. One report (https://usa.streetsblog.org/2018/09/24/e-scooter-deaths-underscore-the- urgent-need-for-safer-streets/) used this statistic to suggest that e-scooter sharing was approximately six times more deadly than bike share programs, using two US bike share fatalities over the course of 123 million rides. With such a small number of incidents in each case, however, the statistical uncertainty in the actual fatality rate is larger than the difference between the two modes of transportation (2 ± 1.4 in each case). It is thus impossible to draw useful conclusions from this data. A later report by the same author (https://usa.streetsblog.org/2018/12/19/deep-dive-are-e-scooters-unsafe-at-any-speed/) took a more nuanced approach. Injuries Comprehensive Injury statistics for e-scooter use are not yet available, but the CDC launched its first study of e-scooter safety by evaluating data collected in Austin, TX, last fall (https://www.texasmonthly.com/article/cdc-study-electric-scooters-austin/). Until those results Page 5 are released, there are a few other sources of injury data collection available for review. Austin’s Mobility Committee of Council reported that between Sept. 29, 2018 and Oct. 31, 2018, there were nine scooter injuries, compared to 32 bicycle injuries, 44 pedestrian injuries, and 592 motor vehicle injuries in the same period (http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=311739). The city of Portland, OR, found there were 176 e-scooter-related injuries reported to the emergency room between July 25 and Nov. 20, 2018. During the same period, there were 429 bicycle-related ER visits (https://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/article/709719). As explained in the Portland report, it is difficult to compare e-scooter and bicycle injury rates because there is relatively little information about the number and length of bicycle trips. Among the cities we contacted to discuss e-scooter programs, Memphis and Harrisonburg reported evidence of e-scooter injuries. In Memphis, there were a couple serious head injuries in Memphis during the pilot period that were related to e-scooter use. The city responded by mandating the e-scooter apps include rider education, and they pushed for safety demonstrations and free helmet giveaways. Memphis also trained its downtown tourism representatives about e-scooter usage for tourists. These measures appeared to make a positive impact on rider safety. Harrisonburg reported a James Madison University student fell while riding down a steep hill, breaking his arm. Providence and St. Paul all commented that safety was a priority for them and that they wanted to provide education initiatives, but that they did not have injury statistics and had only limited injury anecdotes. Additional Comments about Safety There is a learning curve associated with riding e-scooters that results in an initial elevated risk of crashes when riding an e-scooter. Further, because e-scooter tires are smaller in diameter than most bicycle tires, they can be comparatively more difficult to ride safely over cracks and uneven pavement. Lime is replacing all their e-scooters with the new Lime-S Gen 3.0, which Wired reviewed in October of 2018 (https://www.wired.com/story/lime-scooter-gen3-design/). This model has notable safety improvements over previous models, including larger (10-inch) tires, dual suspension, an improved braking system (electrical and mechanical in front; step-based at the back), a maximum speed of 14.8 mph, and an active rear light and reflectors for increased visibility. Page 6 Educational outreach and demonstration programs, along with customized safety tips, could be used to help address e-scooter ridership risks. Eric Hathaway from Engineering has begun the process of working with Cayuga Medical Center to help collect injury statistics. Lime requires all e-scooter riders to be at least 18 years old. Insurance and Liability It is common for cities to include insurance and indemnification clauses in their agreements with e-scooter providers, and NACTO guidelines recommend that cities require providers to hold insurance and to indemnify the city in the event of injury. The current MOU between Ithaca and Lime for bicycle sharing includes provisions for both indemnification and insurance: 6. Indemnification. LimeBike shall defend, pay, indemnify and hold harmless City, its officers, officials, employees, agents, invitees, and volunteers (collectively "City Parties") from all claims, suits, actions, damages, demands, costs or expenses of any kind or nature by or in favor of anyone whomsoever and from and against any and all costs and expenses, including without limitation court costs and reasonable attorneys' fees, resulting from or in connection with loss of life, bodily or personal injury or property damage arising directly or indirectly out of or from or on account of: a. Any occurrence upon, at or from City Property or occasioned wholly or in part by the entry, use or presence upon City Property by LimeBike or by anyone making use of City Property at the invitation or sufferance of LimeBike, except such loss or damage which was caused by the sole negligence or willful misconduct of City. b. Use of LimeBike's bikes by any individual, regardless of whether such use was with or without the permission of LimeBike, including claims by users of the bikes or third parties. 7. Insurance. LimeBike shall procure and maintain for the duration of this agreement insurance against claims for which LimeBike has indemnified the City pursuant to Section 5 of this Agreement. LimeBike shall maintain General Liability limits no less than One Million and no/100 Dollars ($1,000,000.00) per occurrence for bodily injury, personal injury and property damage, and in the sum of One Million and no/100 Dollars ($1,000,000.00) for injury to or death of more than one person for each occurrence, and Umbrella coverage no less than Five Million and no/100 Dollars ($5,000,000.00). Each insurance policy shall name the City as an additional insured and it shall be endorsed to state that: (i) coverage shall not be suspended, voided, or cancelled by either party, or reduced in coverage or in limits except after thirty (30) calendar days prior written notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, has been given to City; and (ii) for any covered claims, the LimeBike's insurance coverage shall be primary insurance as respects the City and any insurance or self-insurance maintained by the City shall be in excess of the LimeBike's insurance and shall not contribute with it. Page 7 The insurance required to be provided herein, shall be procured by an insurance company approved by City, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld. Currently, insurance coverage for riders is handled through the e-scooter companies’ usage agreements. There is no explicit coverage to protect riders in the event of an injury or malfunction. Lime’s User Agreement can be found here: https://www.li.me/user-agreement Equitable Ridership Access to e-scooters can potentially provide a new, affordable mode of transportation to those who need it most. To help encourage equitable distribution and usage of e-scooters, several cities, including Providence, Portland, and St. Louis, have stipulations requiring e-scooter providers to ensure e-scooters are distributed among a variety of neighborhoods. St. Louis did so by specifying Social Equity and Inclusion Target Neighborhoods (http://www.stlbikeshare.org/uploads/7/8/3/3/7833643/bike_share_social_equity_and_inclusion_targ et_neighborhoods.pdf) “which mapped out areas with high concentrations of low income households, people of color, households with no access to a vehicle, and non-English speakers. The neighborhoods with high concentrations of those factors that were also within reasonable biking distance of MetroLink and the urban core of the city were chosen as places that could benefit the most from additional affordable transportation option.” Lime has a program called Lime Access which provides access to their bicycles for people without smartphones, bank cards, or people who live in a low-income household. Lime Access users can text-to-unlock bikes, pay in cash, and receive a 95% discount on pedal bikes and 50% discount on Lime-E. Jeff Goodmark from Lime has confirmed that Lime Access will be active for e-scooters as well. Geography Because of their relatively small motors, e-scooters struggle to climb steep hills such as those that surround the Ithaca Commons. Scooters can be staged along hills and at the tops of hills to provide users with downhill access. Of the cities we questioned, both Providence and Harrisonburg have some significant hills. Harrisonburg has a similar geography to Ithaca, with a flat downtown area surrounded by steep hills. Harrisonburg reported that Bird stages quite a few e-scooters to serve students living at the top of the hill. Ridership declines sharply in areas where the hills are steepest, but they did report one student broke his arm as a result of a fall while riding an e-scooter down a steep section of hill. Page 8 Providence reported that e-scooters are not used as much on hills. Lime has indicated that the hills surrounding Ithaca can be geofenced to prevent riding the scooters up or down the hills. E-Scooter Sharing in Other Cities Sarah Barden and Megan Powers have communicated firsthand with city employees about their e-scooter programs in four cities: Harrisonburg, VA, Memphis, TN, Providence, RI, and St. Paul, MN. Portland, OR, provides extensive information about its e-scooter program online. Reviewing conversations with these cities revealed several common themes. ● Cities use the NACTO Guidelines to model their MOUs and ordinances. ● Cities rely on their existing bike infrastructure for e-scooters (as opposed to building new infrastructure). ● Cities limit e-scooter speed to 15 mph, at least in some areas. ● Cities employ selective geofencing to prohibit e-scooters from particular areas. Geofencing uses GPS to establish a virtual perimeter around an area. The device’s software can respond to the geofence in a variety of ways. For example, a geofence can be set up so that an e-scooter cannot be ridden within a particular boundary (for example, on the Ithaca Commons). ● Cities are concerned about poorly parked e-scooters. Lime scooters have generally been parked well, and Lime staffing has been responsive. ● Cities are concerned about safety and want to launch education initiatives. Most have not done so because of the logistics and cost involved. ● Cities struggle with citizens riding e-scooters on sidewalks but do not have a good solution. Harrisonburg, VA Of all the cities MATCom investigated, Harrisonburg is closest in size to Ithaca. Like Ithaca, it is a college town with a centralized downtown area. Harrisonburg was the least prepared of the cities for the influx of e-scooters. Both Bird and Lime brought e-scooters to Harrisonburg before the city had prepared e-scooter guidelines or established an MOU. Harrisonburg found itself at the center of an escalating e-scooter competition between Bird and Lime and became overwhelmed with the number of e-scooters. The city was able to rein in the e-scooter companies and now has a good relationship with Lime. It has worked with Lime to implement temporary geofencing for events. Harrisonburg is now looking to expand the Lime fleet to include bicycles. Page 9 More so than other cities we researched, Harrisonburg reported conflict between drivers and e- scooters. After the first 32 days with Bird scooters, Bird told Harrisonburg that there had been 26,779 total rides, with an average ride length of 0.77 miles and duration of 8.9 minutes. During this period, Harrisonburg estimates the scooters received an average of close to 5 trips per day. During January and February, the Lime scooters averaged only 1.6 rides per scooter per day, but this included two days of inclement weather where there were no rides recorded. Removing these days, the scooters average between 2 and 2.2 rides per day. Contact: Wesley Russ Assistant City Attorney Wesley.Russ@harrisonburgva.gov (540) 432-7110 Memphis, TN Memphis studied how other cities responded to e-scooters and created an ordinance in advance of their arrival in the city. When Nashville ejected Bird e-scooters from the city, Memphis invited Bird there instead and quickly worked with Bird to create an interim operating agreement. Lime introduced 250 e-scooters after being asked by the city to wait for the interim agreement with Bird, but Memphis responded by impounding the Lime e-scooters. Memphis negotiated a deal with Lime two months later. Improper parking that blocked ADA access was initially a problem in Memphis, but Bird helped address the issue by firing some of the chargers who were not complying with regulations and by including staffers who ride around the city and reposition poorly parked devices. Memphis added e-scooter specific parking. Its bike infrastructure was lightly used, so the introduction of e-scooters has not caused a strain. Memphis manages volume by requiring e-scooters to average 3 rides per day. A few citizens needed care at a trauma center following head injuries related to e-scooter use. Memphis has since required that the e-scooter apps include rider education. Memphis has also educated its downtown representatives about e-scooter usage for tourists. Contact: Doug McGowen Chief Operating Officer, City of Memphis Page 10 doug.mcgowen@memphistn.gov (901) 636-6586 Providence, RI Providence is interesting because it allows both cycling and e-scooter riding on its sidewalks. The sidewalks in Providence are not particularly wide, and the increased ridership has caused increasing tension. So far, there isn’t enough data to determine whether crashes between e- scooter riders and pedestrians are more likely to occur in Providence than in other cities. Providence is investigating several options to limit e-scooter riding on sidewalks, including introducing a ban to riding e-scooters on downtown streets and explicitly linking allowed sidewalk use with the lack of a designated bike lane. Providence explicitly modeled its e-scooter policies on the NACTO guidelines and has the MOU posted publicly via the city’s website: (http://www.providenceri.gov/wp- content/uploads/2018/08/Scooter-policy-update-final-12-27-18.pdf). Citizens’ reception to the e-scooter program has been less enthusiastic than the reaction to the bike-sharing program. The on-the-ground team for the bike share component has generally been more responsive than a similar team for the e-scooter program. Providence currently hosts two e-scooter companies. One of them pulled out for the winter, and the other has significantly reduced ridership, even though Providence has had relatively little snowfall to date. Providence charges its scooter providers $1 per scooter per day, and its scooters have averaged 2.5 trips per day per scooter. Contact: Alex Ellis Principal Planner (401) 680-8522 aellis@providenceri.gov St. Paul, MN St. Paul currently has agreements with both Bird and Lime for e-scooter sharing. The city preemptively addressed concerns about poorly parked e-scooters by including a provision that the e-scooter providers would pay the city whenever a city employee was called to reposition an e-scooter. The agreement gives the e-scooter company a window before the city employee is called. St. Paul has still struggled with illegally or poorly parked e-scooters, but the city has found that the e-scooters are repositioned or re-rented before its staff can arrive on the scene. Page 11 St. Paul struggles with citizens riding e-scooters on the sidewalks (which is illegal) and in various parks where bicycles and similar devices are banned. They hope to launch an education initiative in the future. Overall response to the e-scooter program has been positive. There have been complaints about negative pedestrian-scooter interactions, but there has not been a noticeable uptick in crashes. St. Paul does not have an e-scooter program active for the winter but plans to renew agreements for the spring. The St. Paul MOU can be viewed here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3kAZ5t5YyDKem5LR3F3TDBoX1h5TUhxNHZpOU83YXVMeT Q4/view?usp=sharing Contact: Reuben Collins Transportation/Planning Engineer reuben.collins@ci.stpaul.mn.us (651) 266-6059 Portland, OR We have not spoken with anyone in Portland firsthand, but Portland has made a wealth of information available online. Portland commissioned an independent, scientific study of e-scooter ridership and perceptions as part of its pilot program. On the whole, the people of Portland approve of the e-scooter program. Citizens with positive views of the program stressed the flexibility, convenience, and fun of the program. Those with negative views were concerned about improper or illegal use of e-scooters. Top priorities among all survey respondents were education about and enforcement of the current rules See Portland’s PBOT page for more information and to read its reports: https://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/77294 Feedback from City Departments Representatives from city departments we have interviewed have generally been positive about implementing an e-scooter program. Most are concerned about helping to ensure safety and/or to curtail improper parking. Page 12 City Clerk Julie Holcomb is especially concerned about safety and is willing to collaborate with Lime and NGO’s like BikeWalk Tompkins to deploy education initiatives. In particular, she would like to see a proactive education campaign prior to the launch of any pilot program. She recommends a FAQ and timeline to be provided to City staff and downtown representatives. She prefers a curfew that aligns with sunset to prevent scooter use after dark. Engineering Tim Logue suggests Ithaca ask the Health Department to help collect e-scooter incident data. He also recommends we ask Lime to sponsor an independent study about e-scooter usage. He recommends we wait to see where the e-scooters are used before introducing new infrastructure requests. He is in favor of using a pilot program to learn more about how this alternate form of transportation would be utilized by residents and visitors. Fire Department Chief Tom Parsons has concerns about insurance and liability, but his top priority is safety. He would be in favor of e-scooters if Ithaca can implement requirements and education to make their use as safe as possible. Planning and Economic Development The Planning and Economic Development Division was particularly interested in ensuring the scooters and bikes are spread equitably throughout Ithaca. Scooter use is limited to people who are 16 or older, but Ithaca Youth can benefit strongly from enhanced mobility options. An agreement with Lime could also require Lime Bikes to be distributed so that they’re easy for middle- and high-school students to use for accessing after-school activities. They saw an opportunity to make The Commons more accessible by allowing scooters on The Commons but limiting their speed to 5 mph. Unfortunately, the technology for scooters to achieve this is not quite ready, and Lime recommends enforcing having no scooters on the Commons. JoAnn Cornish strongly endorses education initiatives and encourages training downtown tourism staff to promote safe scooter ridership. To address concerns about parking, Planning recommended considering drop-off zones for bike and scooter share vehicles as seen in Seattle (https://sdotblog.seattle.gov/2018/03/15/new- designated-bike-share-parking-areas-come-to-ballard/) to be designated with on-street/sidewalk paint or installation of physical corrals or barriers. Locations would be chosen not to detract from vehicle parking or interfere with accessibility. Page 13 The Planning Division appeared open to an interim scooter agreement with Lime and would appreciate a draft MOU that meets the NACTO Guidelines to serve as a basis moving forward. They believe Lime should pay an operating fee of some amount to the City of Ithaca. City Attorney Aaron Levine recommended that he be involved in drafting the MOU if the city indicated interest in pursuing a pilot program for e-scooters, but that he did not need to weigh in at this time. Police Department To date, we have not been able to schedule a meeting with the Ithaca Police Department. Feedback from Lime Jeff Goodmark from Lime says his company places emphasis on safety foremost and also concentrates on accessibility, affordability, and availability of shared transport devices. Since its bicycle-sharing launch in April 2018, there have been approximately 90,000 rides, with 12,000 of these on e-bikes. Lime currently employs several people in Ithaca depending on the season. Currently, in the winter, Lime has two full-time employees and six part-time employees. This will be increasing soon as temperatures increase. Lime attests it will not launch e-scooters without a formal agreement to do so with the city of Ithaca. The company is willing to conduct education and publicity events leading up to a program launch. The maximum scooter speed will be set to 15 mph. The company will target an average ridership of four rides per scooter per day. The Lime Access program is still available with e-scooters. While e-scooters are profitable to Lime, the bicycles are not. Consequently, Lime feels it is important to introduce e-scooters to Ithaca. Lime would like to see e-scooters introduced in April and requests that Ithaca sign an exclusive agreement with Lime for e-scooters. New York State Law Currently, e-scooters are illegal in New York State, but enforcement appears to be largely left to individual municipalities. A proposal in Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s state budget would establish state traffic laws governing electric bikes and scooters and authorize local governments to authorize them as they prefer. FY 2020 Executive State Budget, part P, beginning on page 102: https://www.budget.ny.gov/pubs/archive/fy20/exec/artvii/ted-artvii.pdf Page 14 NACTO Guidelines NACTO, the National Association of City Transportation Officials, developed a set of policy guidelines it believes all cities should follow when navigating “shared active transportation.” These are on pages 6-9 of “Guidelines for the Regulation and Management of Shared Active Transportation”, v. 1, July, 2018: https://nacto.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/NACTO-Shared- Active-Transportation-Guidelines.pdf Conclusion Sarah Barden and Megan Powers have found that on the whole, e-scooters represent an exciting opportunity for the City of Ithaca. We believe Ithaca should develop an exclusive e- scooter agreement with Lime, separate from the bike-share MOU, to launch a pilot e-scooter program for a predefined, renewable period of time. Ithaca should expect citizens to ride e-scooters illegally on the sidewalks. Residents will express concern about both improper ridership and lack of enforcement. The city can help alleviate these concerns by working with Lime to ensure proper ridership is supported and to leverage local interested NGOs and groups to better educate residents. We strongly support a proactive education campaign prior to the launch of the pilot program. The parking of e-scooters will be a second area of concern. Ithaca should act proactively with Lime to ensure its employees are actively monitoring scooters for improper parking. Any MOU regarding e-scooters should follow the guidelines outlined by NACTO. Ithaca should ensure the insurance and indemnification clauses are in place and that the maximum scooter speed is limited to 15 mph. Ithaca should establish fees associated with e-scooter operation in the city. Because e-scooters are more expensive to ride than bicycles, and because e-scooter ridership is limited to those 18 and older, Ithaca should consider requiring Lime to maintain a minimum fleet of bicycles along with the e-scooter program. Lime asked for an exclusivity agreement for e-scooters. Ithaca is small enough that it is reasonable to work exclusively with one provider until e-scooter riding is well understood.