The City of Richmond is looking to extend the e-scooter pilot project for another four years.
This is on the agenda at Richmond’s public works and transportation committee meeting on Wednesday.
City staff is recommending the pilot project extension, saying it supports “a low carbon mobility option” for residents, employees and community members of Richmond.
Richmond was the first city in Metro Vancouver to offer the e-scooter pilot project, which began in July 2021.
The project allowed the public to legally ride an e-scooter on the streets with cycling lanes and on shared pathways.
More than 107,000 e-scooter trips and 13,000 e-bike rides have been taken since May 2022 when Lime, a shared e-scooter service, started operations in Richmond, according to a city staff report.
There are now 200 e-scooters and e-bikes in service throughout Richmond.
Since the pilot was launched, Richmond RCMP have issued two tickets for riders not wearing a helmet and two for excessive speeds.
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure will lead an on-going safety evaluation during the next phase of the provincial e-scooter project while partnering with ICBC and the BC Injury Research and Prevention Unit.
“Through monitoring and evaluation, the project is an opportunity to inform future micro-mobility and active transportation initiatives,” reads the report.
E-scooters are currently allowed in 12 cities in B.C. but some only let people ride their own e-scooters and different cities might have varying requirements.
- with files from Daisy Xiong
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