HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-11-23 Public Comment - A. Kociolek - ScootersFrom:Angela Kociolek
To:Agenda
Subject:Scooters
Date:Thursday, May 11, 2023 10:18:44 AM
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Dear Commissioners,
Micromobility is an important topic and I appreciated the discussion and acknowledgement of concerns and
unintended consequences at the May 9th, 2023 commission meeting.
I generally agree with the following issues and solutions that were raised.
1. Orderly parking versus littering/obstructing - Solutions: # identifier on the unit; continual charging of credit card
until parked in an official parking stall; three strikes you’re out. Parking stalls make sense if the City decides to
pursue an agreement with a vendor but please don’t make the garish or take up too much car parking space.
2. Reduce reliance on cars - Solution: Incentivize folks to walk, bike, skateboard, personal scooter, etc. anytime.
These are proven and inexpensive ways to get around a city and pleasant when we have contiguous sidewalks,
cleared bike paths, natural elements, etc. … but we don’t need a vendor to promote this.
3. Where do scooters make sense? - Solution: Places like MSU make the most sense rather than Main St. because
Main Street/Babcock/Mendenhall is compact and walkable. At high density spread out areas like MSU, they could
actually serve a commuting purpose not just be a cool touristy thing to do as they seem to have been used in the past.
We could also encourage a timeshare program whereby a neighborhood can get a set to use and return to the same
place. However, I’m not sure they can be used to go grocery shopping, for example, and people in my neighborhood
by the fairgrounds already bike to campus for work and school. Scooters seems like an unnecessary item to actively
add to the mix. Be proactive in providing parking for them, yes, but we don’t need to be spending this much time on
giving a financial windfall to a Blink, Bird or similar company.
4. Who actually uses scooters and why? - Solution: I agree with Commissioners Coburn and Cunningham that we
need more data to make informed decisions on this. Who is using scooters, why are they using them, do they replace
bike miles or car miles? All of this seems important BEFORE entering into vendor agreements or costly RFP
contracts. This seems like a rather straightforward survey that can be done on engage.bozeman.net. I’d be glad to
volunteer to help with this effort.
5. Safety concerns - Solutions: Have a lower age limit; enforcement by calling a tip line with # identifier to report
unsafe behavior; MY NEW IDEA: safety/etiquette video that must be watched before they can get the unlocking
mechanism the first time they rent - would have clear expectations and known ramifications when rules are broken;
ie continual charging of their card until they park in a designated area.
Head scratchers
1. Big idea 2.2 “offer incentives to encourage desired behaviors” is just about boosting ridership/making the vendor
money. As a reader I thought this would be about encouraging people to ride on the roads safely and parking them in
designated areas.
2. How is it that scooters that cost money every time to use would be considered affordable to people living in low
income housing? It would be cheaper to buy a used bike or find a free one at the Bike Kitchen or online.
3. Why would we as a City already feeling the stress of increased traffic and tourist pressure want to promote
scooters when we still haven’t gotten the bike lane/safe routes to school thing done right? Gravel in the bike lanes,
disappearing/missing bike lanes, etc. The City is biting off more than it can chew with this. Sometimes less is more.
Work on the infrastructure of a well built and maintained bike route system then if/when folks want to use other
wheeled things on them, have clear rules/expectations in place just like any other vehicle type.
4. Notably, a lot of the topics discussed at the meeting were not included in the BIG IDEAS presented but insteadwere generated by the people in the room. Please remember how you can save tax payer money by getting localinput first and then only hiring out if we truly don’t have the creativity or knowledge to solve the problem ourselves.
Thank you,
Angela Kociolek620 N Tracy Ave Bozeman