Micromobility and the Built Environment

Abstract

Within a remarkably short time, a wide range of small scale, short-range transportation options have catapaulted themselves into the urban environment throughout the US and the world. Incorporating these micromobility vehicles into the existing built environment poses several uniquely human opportunities and challenges. They hold out the promise of meeting the classic first mile/last mile transit access problem, but confusion remains about the best place for their use, parking, storage, and operations. This presentation will summarize a vehicle categorization scheme and an urban audit process to support urban designers and engineers as they incorporate this challenging opportunity into their community. It will also touch on specific vehicle design details that are critical to user safety. A discussion of potential options for behavioral modification using software platforms and vehicle hardware will also be provided. The presentation will conclude with design, planning, and policy recommendations for supporting micromobiltiy appropriately.

Shared E-Scooters: A Review of Uses, Health and Environmental Impacts, and Policy Implications of a New Micro-Mobility Service

“…Some studies have concluded that the public is not used to this new micro-mobility vehicle and that an adaptation period may be needed before e-scooters are accepted as an ordinary mobility option [61]. Overall, e-scooter safety is likely to improve once users learn to navigate urban traffic [62] and car drivers become accustomed to novel forms of mobility [6]. These findings are important, since both the academic [63,64] and gray literature [39] in different parts of the world identified the feeling of insecurity as a major entry barrier to e-scooter use.…”

“…Moreover, although the learning curve for these devices is short, it is not non-existent. Training might help inexperienced riders to learn how to drive e-scooters in a less threatening environment and under less time pressure [62].…”

“…According to Transportation for America [78], cities should set clear guidelines on where these vehicles can be used and provide the funding or infrastructure necessary to improve safety. However, confusion remains about the best environments for their use [62]. In Germany, Austria, and France, for instance, e-scooters are supposed to travel in bicycle lanes or, if not available, on roads [76].…”

“…In New Zealand, by contrast, e-scooters can be used on pavements but not in designated on-road cycle lanes [2]. Despite these discrepancies, several academic papers [1,53,62] have suggested that in order to protect pedestrians, e-scooters should operate not on pavements but in bicycle lanes.…”

Identifying and Characterising Active Travel Corridors for London in Response to Covid-19 Using Shortest Path and Streetspace Analysis

“…Per-person travel space requirements for different modes. Source: National League ofCities, 2019;Tice, 2019 …”