1. Improper scooter parking is infrequent (and cars mis-park more often).

First, we needed to establish a baseline: how much scooter mis-parking occurs? What types of mis-parking happen most often? And how does scooter mis-parking compare to mis-parking by other modes? As detailed in a previous IPMI article (Brown et al., 2021), we observed scooter, car, and bike parking behaviors in five US cities in 2020. We found that scooter mis-parking is rare: less than 1% of all parked scooters impeded pedestrian access across the five cities we studied. By comparison, a quarter of parked cars impeded travel for other road users.

In follow-up research in Auckland, New Zealand and Washington, DC in 2021, we found roughly similar results: 5-6% of scooters impeded pedestrian access, although 15-19% were mis-parked according to local regulations (e.g. parked against buildings, on landscaped vegetation, etc.). These findings align with studies conducted by others (Fang et al., 2018; Seattle Department of Transportation, 2019). (See Figure 1)

2. People overestimate rates of improper scooter parking.

While we observed low rates of scooter mis-parking, we were curious to know if public perception matched observed parking behaviors. We therefore complemented our field observations in Auckland and Washington, DC with surveys of the public. We asked respondents how often they thought scooters were parked improperly; in both cities, people overestimated rates of improper scooter parking. Most respondents in DC thought that more than 30% of scooters were mis-parked, when in reality fewer than 20% of scooters were mis-parked and only 6% impeded access. The average Auckland respondent thought that between 20 and 30% of scooters were mis-parked. Again, this is an overestimate: only 14% were mis-parked and fewer than 5% impeded access. 

Transportation professionals also overestimate scooter mis-parking. We surveyed audiences at transportation webinars and conferences and found that nearly 40% of practitioners believe that more than 30% of scooters are parked improperly. This mismatch between professional perceptions and observed parking behaviors could present practical challenges as transportation professionals are often responsible for designing micromobility programs and policies.

3. Riders and the public intuit that scooters should not impede sidewalks

The mismatch between public perceptions and observed rates of mis-parking begs the question: what does the public think constitutes scooter mis-parking? To answer this question, we surveyed people on the street in scooter-dense areas in Auckland and DC and conducted an online survey of scooter users in Auckland, New Zealand; Cologne, Germany; Milton Keynes, England; Nashville, U.S.; and Rome, Italy. We showed people pictures of scooters parking in various positions and asked them if the scooter was parked properly or improperly.

Both riders and the public clearly understand the importance of a clear pedestrian right-of-way: most respondents reported that scooters that were tipped over, blocked a crosswalk curb cut, were parked in the middle of the sidewalk, and blocked a door were improperly parked.

4. People think that tidy parking is proper parking

Up to this point, we analyzed whether scooters block pedestrian access and whether they adhere to local scooter parking regulations. These first two dimensions, access and regulatory adherence, are often the focus of policymakers and, by extension, scooter policy. But we find that the public often focuses on a third dimension of scooter parking not typically addressed by regulations: aesthetics. We presented survey respondents with two nearly identical scenarios of scooter parking. In both images, three scooters are parked in the furniture zone of a wide sidewalk, not obstructing pedestrian travel; the only difference between the two images is the orientation of the parked scooters.

To distinguish between regulations and aesthetics, we asked people (a) whether the pictured scooters were parked in accordance with local regulations and (b) whether they cluttered the street. Respondents overwhelmingly reported that the scooters parked parallel to one another were tidy and properly parked, while the scooters parked at angles relative to one another were viewed as cluttered and improperly parked. Furthermore, when looking across all ten of the parking scenarios we tested, a strong linear relationship appears between perceptions of clutter and proper parking. In other words: the public perceives scooters that park tidily as properly parked and vice versa.

5. Scooter riders want to do the right thing

We find that most scooters are properly parked; one explanation for this may be that most riders themselves report wanting to do the right thing. In our surveys, three-quarters reported that they have never parked a scooter improperly. These riders stated that the most important reason for proper parking was: “I care about how my parking might affect other travelers.” In contrast, those who mis-parked stated that the main reasons for mis-parking were unclear rules or not knowing the rules.

Given underlying motivations to park properly reported by most riders, we wanted to test if simple educational messages and reminders could affect riders’ parking behaviors.

In Washington, DC, we introduced in-app message reminders about proper parking for Lime users. Following their introduction, we observed improvements across all meaningful measures of parking behavior. The percentage of scooters impeding pedestrian access dropped from 6% to 0% and mis-parking according to local regulations dropped by 80%. In large part these changes were driven by reduced parking in the middle of the sidewalk and increased parking at bike racks.