Evaluating Modal Shift in Response to Electric Scooter Sharing Services in Oakland, California
BACKGROUND
Shared electric scooters, commonly referred to as e-scooters, have recently emerged as a micro-mobility option where riders use smartphone applications to rent dockless e-scooters. This new form of mobility provides opportunities to facilitate short trips and provide connections to public transit. E-scooters also have the potential to replace bicycle and pedestrian trips, but little is known about the effect of e-scooter usage on traveler behavior in practice. Previous work examined the relationship between e-scooter use and mode choice through summary statistics, finding that e-scooters generally replace vehicle trips and walking (1–5). However, despite an overall substitution of active travel modes due to e-scooters, some reports also show a percentage of riders increasing their rates of walking and bicycling (2).

This paper presents the results of an online survey of e-scooter share riders in Oakland, California. and explores the impact of e-scooters on mode choices including the use of active transportation, automobiles, and other forms of shared mobility. This work extends previous findings by examining impacts to a comprehensive list of modes and analyzing the underlying causes of modal shift trends(1–5).

PURPOSE
Transportation planners and policymakers require an understanding of the opportunities and challenges posed by the rapidly growing number of mobility options in order to make informed decisions about infrastructure and related policies. This analysis adds to our limited understanding of the relationship between e-scooter use and popular mode choices.

METHODOLGY
Working with OakDOT staff, the author drafted an online survey covering mode choice and scooter use. The survey was made available in three languages and was distributed to scooter riders by two scooter companies and to the general public via the OakDOT website. Lime distributed the survey to a random sample of 20% of its Oakland riders, while Bird sent the survey to all its Oakland riders. 763 usable survey responses were used in this analysis.

RESULTS
E-scooters appear to compete directly with active travel, with 42% and 30% of riders saying they would have walked or biked to their destination, respectively, had an e-scooter not been available. Riders also reduced their vehicle use since the arrival of the new mobility service, with 58% of riders indicating that they have reduced usage of ride-hailing services. In contrast, the survey indicates that e-scooters may complement public transit use, with more riders using public transit more often (17%) as opposed to less often (10%) after e-scooters were introduced.

CONCLUSION
Survey results show Oakland e-scooter riders are reducing travel via automobile, similar to findings from other cities. There is also evidence of reduced active travel, although 13% of respondents say they walk more often after using e-scooters compared to 35% of respondents saying they walk less often. This analysis assumes that changes in riders’ mode choices are caused by the introduction of e-scooters, although other factors may have influenced travel behavior over the same time period. As the e-scooter market continues to expand, it will be critical for decisionmakers to understand their effects on traveler behavior in order to harness potential benefits and mitigate impacts.

Presenter: Melody Lin
Agency Affiliation: University of Washington

Presenter Biographical Statement: [biography]