E-Scooter as Environmentally Friendly Last Mile Option? Insights on Spatial and Infrastructural Implications for Urban Areas based on the Example of Vienna

Markvica, Karin and Schwieger, Klemens and Aleksa, Michael (2020) E-Scooter as Environmentally Friendly Last Mile Option? Insights on Spatial and Infrastructural Implications for Urban Areas based on the Example of Vienna. SHAPING URBAN CHANGE – Livable City Regions for the 21st Century. Proceedings of REAL CORP 2020, 25th International Conference on Urban Development, Regional Planning and Information Society. pp. 243-250. ISSN 2521-3938

[img] Text (E-Scooter as Environmentally Friendly Last Mile Option? Insights on Spatial and Infrastructural Implications for Urban Areas based on the Example of Vienna)
CORP2020_12.pdf - Published Version

Download (973kB)
Official URL: https://www.corp.at/

Abstract

We recently face an e-scooter hype in Europe. More and more e-scooter sharing offers are provided in cities and towns which are marketed as a last mile option. At the same time, a greater extent of private households has their own equipment. This trend is two-fold as e-scooter offers not only provide benefits (e.g. in terms of accessibility) but also pose certain risks (e.g. in terms of road safety). To find out about spatial and technical implications and to assess the potential of e-scooters for urban areas, we used a ‘triangulation’ research strategy using different sources. Based on the insights from a trend and target group analysis and focus groups with users and non-users we conducted 1-week tests with personsusing e-scooters on everyday routes (N=51), a survey of users and non-users (N=128) and course exercises carried out with pupils (N=94) in the city of Vienna in Austria. Against widespread assumptions that e-scooters can use existing infrastructure, we found that the preconditions are not necessarily suitable for e-scooters. Infrastructure elements would have to be adapted to enable a safe use of e-scooters. It was revealed that e-scooter usage should be recommended for the last mile in suburban areas and not the city center as the density and infrastructure (e.g. cubblestone) do not correspond to preconditions essential for a safe e-scooter usage. In addition to that, we found that labeling e-scooters as an environmentally friendly option is the subject of controversial debate.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: e-scooter, urban areas, infrastructure implications, spatial implications, Vienna
Subjects: H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor
H Social Sciences > HE Transportation and Communications
Depositing User: REAL CORP Administrator
Date Deposited: 02 Feb 2021 08:50
Last Modified: 02 Feb 2021 08:50
URI: http://repository.corp.at/id/eprint/636

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item