Micromobility: Improving Accessibility
Nashville is a relatively sprawling city dominated by cars and has a transit network that needs to grow with the development boom that the city has experienced. What seems like overnight, electric shared-scooters were all over Nashville. Tech companies saw a need for quick and reliable transportation options and began rolling out shared bikes and scooters all over the nation. While these micromobility options have been around for awhile, they evolved to be a feasible and reliable mode of transportation due to advances in technology like GPS tracking, smartphone applications, motorization, and safety enhancements. These advancements spurred an influx of inventory as well as increased ridership.
When the electric shared-scooters dropped, it felt like an experiment, and the results were mixed. People were instantly drawn to the shared micromobility solutions as a novelty, but their care for the equipment was extremely poor. They were littered in streets, parked in the middle of sidewalks, and some bikes and scooters even ended up in trees and rivers just for the heck of it.
Despite the negative impacts, we learned that privatized, shared, “park-anywhere” scooters and bikes could be the solution for a more comprehensive transportation system. However, the efforts needed to get organized and quickly in order to be more equitable and successful.
Micromobility is an asset to comprehensive transportation
When it comes to shared scooters and other forms of micromobility, there are many benefits to the community that can be overshadowed by some of the negative factors.
It creates more accessibility to affordable, quick modes of transit. Scooters allow for visitors, as well as community members, to hop on and ride without having to worry about the barriers for some people who would want to use micromobility as part of their travel. These barriers might be paying for and owning a bike, or worrying about storage and maintenance costs.
Shared micromobility also helps transit riders with the First Mile/ Last Mile problem. By creating easy access to a shared-scooter or bike that can quickly get you from public transport to your destination, micromobility enhances the feasibility of public transportation for those whose final destination is not close to a transit stop.
By making public transportation more feasible, micromobility also promotes a healthier lifestyle by making it easier for people to travel without getting in a car. The results may help more people get to transit stops and get more cars off the road. Plus, the users commuting downtown wouldn’t have to think about finding a parking space or paying for parking if they transitioned to this system.
Quality micromobility leads to better infrastructure
We believe enabling shared micromobility can lead to better infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists. As scooters were introduced to cities across the country, a big question was, “Where do we park the scooters when people are not riding them?”
Cities started making rules to keep parked shared-scooters off the sidewalks for safety and ADA accessibility, but the fact was that there wasn’t designated infrastructure to solve this problem. This showed the need for designated parking for vehicles other than cars. This led to the creation of “Corrals” where some public space in the street was designated for any form of micromobility. The corrals included bike racks, scooter parking, and protection from vehicles on the road.
In addition to helping solve the scooter “clutter” on the sidewalks, corrals also provide shorter crossing distances for pedestrians and enhanced visibility for drivers when placed near the intersection. They also act as traffic calming by decreasing the width of the street and prioritizing pedestrians in the corral instead of the vehicle.
Diagram of how scooter corrals make intersections safer (click to expand)
Scooters have inspired research to reimagine the streets and are an example of one way that communities can reclaim public space from parked cars. Innovative solutions to our transit system are important to shape more sustainable communities and increase transit efficiency. Scooters have created a new challenge for our cities to design more effectively, and to think more about our public spaces.
Concept for scooter ground mural
New technology spurs adaptation
Technology is constantly challenging us to make changes and adapt, and shared scooters are no exception.
The unique challenges shared-scooters face are:
Proper Infrastructure
Safety guidelines
Rules and regulations for riders and companies
With any transportation implementation, new infrastructure, safety, and regulations are always necessary and always improving. Buses need bus stops, boarding islands and designated lanes; trains and subways need rails and ticketing kiosks; bikes need lanes, and eventually protected lanes. Our role in micromobility has focused on addressing the lack of proper infrastructure, such as bike lanes, parking, and traffic calming.
Scooters Land In Nashville
During the summer of 2019 scooter operating companies deployed hundreds of scooters in downtown Nashville and surrounding neighborhoods. Metro Nashville Public Works reacted quickly to create what are known as scooter corrals in the public right of way specifically designated for scooter and bicycle parking around downtown.
One of the first scooter corrals installed at the intersection of 2nd Ave and Commerce St
Material Exploration
As scooters exploded onto the scene, riders needed to be educated in proper use of these new micro-mobility devices. Many riders were unaware or did not follow rules of operation that were outlined in each operators’ app and website. In partnership with Metro Public Works, the Civic Design Center presented some design options using an adhesive matte material that would create a design for the scooter corrals themselves. This was an experimental installation that could be replicated and used as a place to display “ground murals” in public right of way (ROW) (Visit Metro Arts to see the process for displaying art in the ROW).
Scooter Corral at 2nd Ave N & Commerce St before applying experimental ground covering
This was the design selected for the experimental installation
Visioning Creative Corral Designs
As corrals became a necessary piece of scooter parking infrastructure, these relatively low-cost installations were places that became increasingly important in neighborhoods downtown and beyond. They gave riders a better idea of where to find a bank of scooters to board as well as where they could easily park them despite the ability to “park anywhere”.
“Pedal pen” design for East Nashville in zone between alley and parking near Five Points Pizza.
Civic Design Center Partners with Lyft
Inspired by Tactical Urbanism, a strategy to test ideas using temporary, low-cost measures, the Civic Design Center’s TURBO (Tactical URBanism Organizers) partnered with Lyft’s Transit, Bike and Scooter team to propose 10 tactical urbanism corrals to Metro Nashville Public Works that would be placed in key locations with high scooter ridership. The high scooter rider locations were informed by Lyft scooter's aggregated trip data, but we also strategized additional locations with equity in mind. The goal for expanding corrals outside of downtown would be for more community members to integrate shared-scooters into their commutes.
The proposal is shown in the map below:
Bright Pink: Lyft / Design Center Tactical Urbanism Proposal
Dark Pink: Lyft suggestions based on ridership
Blue: Civic Design Center proposal for corrals on private property (Encore Condominiums)
Lyft / Civic Design Center Proposed Potential Corral Locations
Eastland & Chapel (East Nashville)
Shelby & 6th (Cayce Place)
Clearview Ave & 10th (5 points)
MLK and 4th ave (Downtown)
Broadway & 6th (Downtown)
11th & Pine st (Gluch)
Gleaves St & 10th (Gluch)
11th Ave (Gluch)
Edgehill & Villa Pl (Edgehill Village)
21st & Edgehill (Vanderbilt)
Metro steps back to make an informed decision about scooters
The Civic Design Center formally posed these locations to Public Works using their Tactical Urbanism Pilot Application that was designed by the Design Center to allow these types of installations.
The pop-up designs consisted of flex delineators and latex paint that would separate the allotted area for scooter corrals from the roadway. The
However, after the chaos and competition that shared-scooters created, Metro Nashville wanted to make a more informed decision about the companies that would be allowed to continue operating their shared micromobility. As of November 2020, Metro is currently reviewing applications from a select number of scooter outfitters responding to a request for proposal to continue operation. The tactical urbanism application is put on hold until the companies are officially selected and invited back to continue their shared micro-mobility implementation.
Heat map of scooter rider data reported to Metro-Nashville by Shared Urban Mobility Device (SUMD) providers from October 2018 to May 2019
Despite the hold on the application, several locations were implemented by Public Works. Even though the tactical urbanism installations have not been built, the proposed locations based on Lyft scooter's aggregated trip data and Civic Design Center’s recommendations enabled Public Works to complete installation of long term corrals. These recommendations were reviewed by the Mayor's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities. This group highlighted the benefits of slowing down traffic, decreasing the chance of a pedestrian accident/fatality, and getting shared scooters parked in more designated areas.
Pictured are proposals for scooter corral designs. Design with multiple shades of pink created by the Civic Design Center and “Good Scootizen.” designs were created by Lyft’s design team.
Idea for Placemaking scooter corral on the south side of the Encore Condominiums building (intersection of Almond St and Molly St)
Using PARK(ing) Day to inspire change and educate riders
By creating a tactical urbanism temporary parklet installation on PARK(ing) Day in 2019, Lyft offered free helmets and scooter education information. They helped to add to the many creative ideas built on PARK(ing) Day that work to address the need for more and better public spaces on our streets.
Next steps for creating more equitable shared micromobility
The infrastructure and regulations for scooters came were created in reaction to a major transportation tech experiment in cities all over the United States. With all experiments, some aspects will go well and others will be reworked completely. This is where we need to make sure that we, as a community, are deeply involved in how privatized, dockless, shared, micromobility evolves over time.
While we know that visitors to downtown Nashville have saved a lot of money by parking in the public Cumberland Park lot and riding a scooter over the pedestrian bridge, we need to ensure that micromobility benefits all users. Will lower-income neighborhoods have micromobility corrals? Will far flung neighborhoods at the end of transit lines have micromobility corrals? Will there be a system for “low income” user groups to ride at a reduced rate? Will users take more consideration for people with disabilities by actually using the corrals consistently and riding in bike lanes rather than on the sidewalks?
These are just a few examples of questions we need to keep asking ourselves in order to make sure that the growth of the micromobility industry is improving quality of life for all.
Key Terms:
Micromobility
refers to a range of small, lightweight vehicles operating at speeds typically below 15 mph and driven by users personally (unlike rickshaws). Micromobility devices include bicycles, Ebikes, electric scooters, electric skateboards, shared bicycles, and electric pedal assisted bicycles.
Active Transportation
Active mobility, active travel, active transport or active transportation is the transport of people or goods, through non-motorized means, based around human physical activity.
Scooter Corral
Storage facilities for micromobility devices, often on street or in public right of way.
Placemaking
a multi-faceted approach to the planning, design and management of public spaces.
Delineators
Weighted or mounted post that diverts traffic
Tactical Urbanism
Low-cost, temporary changes to the built environment, intended to improve communities.
Traffic Calming
Traffic calming uses physical design and other measures to improve safety for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists. It has become a tool to combat speeding and other unsafe behaviors of drivers in the neighborhoods.