Hoboken’s six-month electric scooter sharing pilot will conclude on Wednesday, November 20, per the City’s contract with Lime. The pilot period was designed to introduce e-scooters to the Hoboken community and to evaluate the potential for a longer-term e-scooter program after the conclusion of the pilot. In order for the e-scooters with Lime to potentially continue in the City as a pilot phase, an extension must be agreed to and approved by the City Council.
“We strive to be leaders in providing sustainable transportation options within our mile square that enhance mobility for residents,” said Mayor Ravi S. Bhalla. “E-scooters have proven to be a very popular first-mile, last-mile connection for residents to get around our city, and when used responsibly, provide important quality of life improvements for residents. As a city, we’ve gained valuable first-hand knowledge of what has worked with the program, and the safety and enforcement tools that can be improved for a better riding experience for users and non-users of the program.
Understanding the legitimate concerns from residents regarding safety as well as the feedback from many users asking for e-scooters to continue, I’ve asked the Chair of the City Council’s Transportation and Parking Subcommittee, Mike Russo and Councilmember Tiffanie Fisher to convene a working committee with my Director of Transportation, Ryan Sharp, to come up with both short term and long term recommendations regarding a potential e-scooter pilot extension and longer term program, along with other shared mobility services. I thank Councilmembers Russo and Fisher for their interest in the program and improving all modes of transit within Hoboken.”
Next week, the results of the comprehensive public survey regarding e-scooters will be provided to the public. Over 2,000 people filled out the survey which was available to all members of the community. A program evaluation report will also be released to the public.
According to Lime, over 640,000 trips have been taken within Hoboken by over 70,000 unique riders during the pilot period.
In August, the City and Lime updated the terms of the pilot agreement with the City receiving a per-ride fee of $0.35 to invest in greater enforcement and education tools, and transportation infrastructure upgrades. In October, the City hired two Micromobility Code Enforcement Officers to enforce City ordinances and regulations pertaining to e-scooters and other mobility devices. The two officers have been funded through the per ride fee provided to the City from Lime.
The next meeting of the Hoboken City Council is on December 4, 2019.
