City Kicks Off Rules For Kick-Scooter Season

Published 04/06/2024 · Updated 06/10/2024

This should be a file that Ottawa City Council can handle with more ability than it has shown on Lansdowne, light rail and our new bricks-mortar-library in the age of the internet:

Below is a memo from city staff on the kick scooter season and staff’s plan for this weighty topic for 2024:

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Subject / Objet 2024 Electric Kick Scooter Season Date: April 2, 2024

The purpose of this memo is to update the Mayor and Members of Council on the Electric Kick Scooter Pilot Program. After the successful completion of the third season in 2022, Council approved the continuance of a fourth season in 2023 (ACS2023-PRE-TP-0003). At the same time, Council delegated authority to the General Manager of Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development to approve the fifth (and final) year of the pilot, should the results of the 2023 season be satisfactory.

Given the results of the 2023 season (see below), it would be appropriate to continue with the Electric Kick Scooter pilot in 2024. A summary of the 2023 season, as well as the plans for the 2024 season, are provided below. Further details can be found in the attached Supporting Document 1 Results of the Electric Kick Scooter Season and Plans for the 2024 Season and on the project site at E-scooters | City of Ottawa.

Results of the 2023 E-Scooter Season

The 2023 season ran from May 15 to November 15. During this time, approximately 50,000 unique riders took approximately 179,000 rides on a fleet of shared e-scooters. On average, there were approximately 1000 trips per day. The busiest month was July with approximately 1,200 daily trips during the week, and 1,800 daily trips on the weekend, with some weekends reaching 2,500 daily trips. The average trip length was 2.1 km, and average trip duration was 14.8 minutes. The busiest period of usage was in the evening (7PM to 11PM). The total distance covered was approximately 350,000 km, resulting in an estimated reduction in CO2 emissions of between 9,000 and 12,000 kg-CO2eq.

The 2023 season was roughly 40% longer in duration than the 2022 season and had more than twice the trips. Figure 1 shows the usage over the last four seasons. Most trips were for shopping or social purposes, while roughly 18 percent of trips started or ended within 150 metres of a transit station. This represents an upward trend in e-scooters facilitating access to transit over the last four years (2020: 2 percent; 2021: 4 percent; 2022: 5 percent).

The two providers, Bird Canada and Neuron Mobility, each operated with a maximum fleet size of 450 e-scooters (total of 900 for the program). The deployment area was bound by St. Laurent

Boulevard in the east, Rideau River/Carling Avenue in the south, Churchill Avenue in the west and the Ottawa River in the north. This area was over twice the size of the 2022 deployment area (refer to Figure 2). As in previous seasons, e-scooters could be rented from 6AM to 11PM.

Staff remained committed to addressing safety and accessibility issues throughout the 2023 season and saw continued improvements. Originally introduced in 2022, the restrictive parking model was maintained and enhanced in 2023 to prevent mis-parked scooters from blocking sidewalks. Approximately 600 in-app parking locations were identified where users were required to park after ending their rides. The City also designated 22 signed e-scooter parking areas along key corridors, an increase from 13 in 2022. Providers were also required to use geofencing technology to detect and prevent sidewalk riding, and all e-scooters were required to emit a continuous sound when in use to notify other road users of their presence.

The 2023 season also maintained the streamlined complaints process that was introduced in 2022, with increased resources to address issues faster. As part of this process, all e-scooter incidents reported to 3-1-1 (via the e-form or phone call) were transferred to a designated team at By-Law and Regulatory Services who would forward issues to the appropriate e-scooter service provider. Most of the issues reported were mis-parking and sidewalk riding; the majority of issues were addressed in under 30 minutes. By-Law staff monitored and triaged service requests, and took proactive action if/where required. In total, 333 service requests were received in 2023, with most months experiencing a significant reduction in service requests compared to 2022 (refer to Figures 3 and 4).

Consultation with the Accessibility Advisory Committee

City staff presented the results of the 2023 season to the Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) on February 20, 2024. AAC Members spoke about the need to further improve the sound emitted by e-scooters and expressed concern about safety risks to pedestrians and persons with disabilities posed by illegal sidewalk riding and mis-parked scooters. The City and the e-scooter providers will continue to work with all stakeholders, including the AAC and other accessibility representatives, to build on and enhance the improvements introduced in previous seasons (geofencing, restrictive parking model, etc.). The City will also continue to work with the AAC to further test and refine the e-scooter sound emissions.

A key challenge is the increased prevalence of privately owned e-scooters operating on city streets, which are not subject to the same controls as shared e-scooters. As part of the 2024 season, the City will undertake an educational campaign targeted at e-scooter owners on riding and parking etiquette, and public safety.

Plans for the 2024 E-Scooter Season

The 2024 season will build on the measures from the 2023 season. New plans for 2024 include the following:

Start the season as early as April 15 (a month earlier than in 2023), subject to weather and street sweeping operations, and end November 15.

Revise the fee structure for the 2024 season by eliminating the user fee of $0.10 per ride. This change will ensure the program remains revenue neutral while providing sufficient funding to cover all recommended administration, education, and enforcement activities.
Extend the operating hours from 5AM to 1AM (previously 6AM to 11PM) throughout the deployment area, except for the ByWard Market, and ensure companies deploy sobriety technologies for all rides after 11PM. Given that e-scooters can facilitate transit trips, this expansion of operating hours will align with the City’s transit operating hours.
Start with a fleet size of 900 and increase to a maximum of 1200 if requested and justified by the service providers.
Explore options with service providers to make helmets available to all riders (Neuron is already providing helmets with their vehicles).

Next Steps

Staff will initiate the process of offering a contract extension to Bird Canada and Neuron Mobility for the 2024 season. The 2024 season will be the fifth and final year of the Provincial Pilot. Staff will report back to Transportation Committee and Council on the future of the program once the Province advises of their decision to extend the pilot, make the pilot permanent, or discontinue it.

For further questions about the e-scooter pilot, please contact: Kunjan Ghimire, Program Manager, Neighbourhood Traffic Calming (Kunjan.Ghimire@ottawa.ca)

Original signed by

Vivi Chi

cc: Senior Leadership Team

Planning, Real Estate and Economic Development Departmental Leadership Team Director, Public Information and Media Relations

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Plans for 2024

Following a review of the 2023 season, including feedback received from Councillors and the public, staff are planning the following for the 2024 season:

New Measures

• Start the season as early as April 15th (i.e. a month earlier than in 2023), subject to weather and street sweeping operations, and end November 15.

• Revise the fee structure for the 2024 season as shown in Appendix 1. • Extend the operating hours from 5AM to 1AM (previously 6AM to 11PM) throughout the deployment area, with the exception of the ByWard Market, with language in the agreement that would allow the City to revert to 2023 operating hours at any point if necessary. Ensure companies deploy sobriety technologies for all rides after 11PM such as erratic driving detection and/or ride quizzes that must be passed before the e-scooter will start.

• Start with a fleet size of 900 and increase to a maximum of 1,200, if requested and justified by the service providers. Approval would be dependent on the average utilization per vehicle and demand from the public.

• Explore options with the service providers to make helmets available to all riders (Neuron already provides a helmet with its vehicles).

Measures from 2022/2023 for Continuation in 2024

• Hire a full-time co-op student as an additional resource for the program (to collect/review/monitor data, etc.) funded by the pilot program fees.

• Continue funding support from By-Law staff to manage all inquires and complaints. • Require service providers to deploy geofencing for sidewalks, slow zones, and restricted areas city-wide.

• Require service providers to use the same parking areas, and designate them in their app.

• Continue adding e-scooter signage (customized flex stakes) to the established physical signed parking locations and/or review the potential for using other alternatives to designate parking.

• Mandatory “no riding on sidewalk” stickers on e-sooter floorboards.

• Mandatory unified sound emissions for accessibility purposes.

• Streamlined service requests received through 3-11 and transferred to By-Law staff. • 15-minute response time for service providers to address mis-parking complaints. • Develop and implement an educational campaign targeted at private e-scooters,

including hand-out materials that can be distributed to e-scooter retailers, social media campaigns and/or video ads. Identify opportunities to expand the campaign through other programs or initiatives such as the Cycling Safety Awareness Program (CSAP), Safer Roads Ottawa (SRO), etc.

• Continue to hold discussions with the National Capital Commission (NCC) about the potential for e-scooter use on NCC pathways in Ottawa.

• Continue to collect/analyze City data on parking, sidewalk riding, etc. • Review the data obtained from providers (pre-season report, mid-season report, end of season report, weekly submissions).

• Continue to work with accessibility stakeholders to identify best practices for braille including orientation on the scooter and material used.

• Require service providers to provide a QR code directing complaints/questions to the City’s e-form.

Next Steps

This file has outlined the results of the 2023 e-scooter season as well as plans for the continuation of the e-scooter pilot in 2024. . Staff will next initiate the process of offering contract extensions to Bird Canada and Neuron Mobility for the 2024 season, which is the fifth and final year of the Provincial pilot. Staff will report back to Transportation Committee and Council once the Province has made a decision on whether to extend the pilot, make the pilot permanent, or

discontinue it.

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