Study on shared and private e-scooter users
Comments Off on Study on shared and private e-scooter usersSource: Science Direct
The Journal of Cycling and Micromobility Research has recently published a longitudinal study that examined the frequency and characteristics of e-scooter ownership types over 12 months, focusing on whether riding experience improved behaviour or safety among Australian riders.
With the increasing popularity of scooters globally, there have also come some reports of crashes and injuries, with studies indicating rider inexperience as being a key cause, however there has been a lack of longitudinal research on whether rider behaviours change, or if safety improves with experience.
This study aims to address this gap by examining how riding frequency and trip characteristics change with experience for Australian shared and private e-scooter riders over 12 months.
For changes of use, the following barriers and characteristics were identified:
- Barriers – physical effort, costs, availability
- Sociodemographic characteristics – e-scooter ownership and education
Owners and post-school qualification holders were less likely to report a decrease in riding frequency. Notably, perceived costs were linked to increased usage.
In terms of trip length, private e-scooter riders tended to have a shorter duration, decreased multi-modal combinations and fewer substitutions, while that of shared e-scooter users remain approximately the same on a broad scale.
The study suggests that riding experience over one year doesn’t systematically change rider characteristics, indicating that safety benefits from experience are more likely to come from improvements in the capabilities of riders (such as handling, knowledge of rules and hazard anticipation), rather than large characteristic changes.
Study implications
The results indicate that different policies for maintaining or increasing e-scooter use are required. It is recommended that policymakers should provide help to those who do not own scooters that have limited experience by improving shared-fleet availability, affordability, as well as programs or restrictions to aid skill development. They should also prioritise protective infrastructure and amenities at the end of trips for owners to decrease exposure-related risk.