West Hollywood has reached a fork in the road when it comes to its electric rental scooter pilot program, and City Council has to decide which way we’re going.
The councilmembers at their meeting Monday evening will choose between three paths laid out by city staff:
1) terminate the pilot program on July 31, and re-instate the prior ban on rental mobility devices (e-scooters and e-bikes) by Aug. 1
2) postpone the pilot program’s deadline again
3) transition to a permanent program
Should City Council choose to end the pilot program, it would mark a major victory for a large and vocal bloc of West Hollywood residents who vehemently opposed the scooters that lie strewn throughout city streets and sidewalks.
The polarizing program, in operation since July 2021, was recently extended through Oct. 31 to allow time for the acquisition of survey results and subsequent analyses.
*ED’S NOTE: An earlier version of the agenda posted for Monday’s meeting incorrectly stated that city staff were recommending the termination of the program.
NO SLOWING DOWN
On March 6, City Council instructed staff to explore the implementation of speed throttling technology for sidewalk riding. Lime, however, announced that they will not pursue speed throttling due to safety concerns and the inconsistent GPS performance. Instead, Lime implemented a citywide speed cap of 12 mph (previously 15 mph) in May 2023. Bird activated speed throttling technology along specific corridors in the city in May 2023, namely Santa Monica Boulevard, Fairfax Avenue, and N. San Vicente Boulevard. These corridors were chosen for their access to dedicated bike lanes and higher trip volumes.
INSURANCE COVERAGE
Starting on July 1, 2023, Assembly Bill (AB) 371 becomes effective, requiring shared mobility service providers or users to have a minimum coverage of $10,000 for bodily injury or death caused by the negligent conduct of a shared mobility user to a pedestrian. It also mandates $1,000 coverage for property damage to assistive technology devices. Existing state law already requires shared mobility service providers to maintain at least $1,000,000 in general commercial liability coverage for bodily injury or property damage, with West Hollywood imposing a higher requirement of $5,000,000 per occurrence and annual aggregate. However, certain devices, such as human-powered bicycles and specific classes of electric bicycles, are exempt from the insurance coverage mandate.
INCOME AND EXPENSES
WeHo currently contracts with ABM, a third-party company, for field operation management, which includes scooter relocation, violation handling, audits, policy implementation, and operator relations. The monthly cost of this contract is around $12,300 and covers two full-time staff, a company van, a dedicated program cell phone, and safety equipment. Unlike most programs in other cities, West Hollywood’s operators are not responsible for addressing field device complaints.
The city also contracts with Populus, a mobility data aggregator, for tracking program statistics and publishing policies for operators. The current contracts with ABM and Populus expire in December 2023 and June 2023, respectively.
Operators in West Hollywood are required to pay a quarterly permit fee of $5,000, resulting in an annual charge of $20,000 per operator. The operating expenditures for the program, including ABM and Populus, total $151,600, while the revenue from permit fees amounts to $40,000. The estimated total expense to date is $111,600.
The report includes five additional ways the city could make money off the program:
- Per-Trip Fee or Public Right of Way Fee: A fixed amount charged to operators for each dockless shared mobility trip. This fee can be a flat rate or based on factors such as trip duration, device type, or trip origin/destination. Cities like Los Angeles and Santa Monica charge a standard per-trip fee of $0.20, while Los Angeles also has a higher fee of $0.40 for trips in designated zones.
- Trip Count Threshold Fee: A fee based on the number of trips per month, typically applied within a specific range. For example, there may be no fee for the first 5,000 trips, but a per-trip fee for all trips exceeding that threshold. This approach allows operators to introduce the service before gradually increasing fees as the program expands.
- Relocation Parking Fee: A fee charged per device if it is not parked correctly. The operator may be responsible for paying this fee or passing it on to the user. An example is the City of Phoenix, which charged an $80 relocation fee per device.
- Citation Fees: Fines imposed on operators when devices or users violate the terms of the permit. Some cities, like Santa Monica and Los Angeles, have implemented sliding-scale fines or flat fees for violations, while others, like Culver City and West Hollywood, take a corrective approach rather than imposing fines.
- Infrastructure Fee: An annual fee imposed on operators to contribute to city infrastructure supporting the program, such as parking stations or street modifications. The appropriate amount and rationale for this fee would require further research and evaluation.
ALTERNATIVE #1: End the program
If this is chosen, City Council would cancel existing permit agreements with operators, ending the program, and returning to the prohibition on shared on-demand mobility devices (e-scooters and e-bikes) as outlined in the city’s municipal code. Supporting contracts with service providers like ABM, Populus, and Toole Design would also be terminated. The Council may direct staff to develop and implement a Code Compliance plan to mitigate expected impacts from the program’s termination.
Ending the Pilot Program would have several impacts. Lime’s e-bike program, which was launched in West Hollywood, would be affected as Lime has indicated that they would withdraw their operations if speed throttling is required. Additionally, it would impact the city’s goals for emission reductions outlined in the Climate Action Plan and hinder efforts to improve regional public transit and zero-emission mobility options in Southern California.
From a safety perspective, enforcing the prohibition would require additional resources and incur costs related to device removal, disposal, and storage. Code enforcement operations would also be affected, requiring case management, issuing citations, and potentially incurring legal costs.
Staff estimates it would cost approximately $375,000 to contract for the removal of devices from the public right-of-way ($175,000), disposal of devices that have not been retrieved after being impounded ($125,000), and storage for impounded devices ($75,000). These costs do not include impacts on staff workload, mainly to code enforcement operations from a workload perspective. Should this alternative be selected, Page 21 of 21 staff will return to Council with a detailed program wind-down plan, contractual agreements, and funding requests.
ALTERNATIVE #2: Continue the program through Oct. 31
Staff will continue managing the program with any modifications desired by the City Council and initiate the randomized phone survey, at an additional cost of $40,000, to target West Hollywood residents. Staff will return to the City Council with an overall pilot update and survey results by October 2023. At that time, the City Council can provide direction on ending or making the program permanent.
ALTERNATIVE #3: Make the program permanent
Staff will continue managing the Pilot Program with any modifications the City Council desires. Staff will begin to work with Toole Design on the requirements of a permanent program. Staff will proceed with the community survey as was originally scoped (not engage in a randomized phone survey). Staff will present an update to the City Council in October 2023 and a timeline for the permanent program.
STATISTICS
The pilot program has seen a total of 1,452 complaints, with approximately 60% reported by three individuals. The majority of these complaints, 66%, were regarding a device blocking the sidewalk. The City currently authorizes two dockless operators, Bird and Lime, to deploy and operate devices in West Hollywood. The program allows a maximum of 360 e-scooters and 100 e-bikes to be deployed in the City. Lime’s fleet includes e-scooters and e-bikes, while Bird’s fleet only includes e-scooters.
In terms of usage, the program has seen a significant number of trips by users. Approximately one-third of trips in West Hollywood are to and from local destinations, also referred to as internal trips (33%). Over 50% of trips have inbound or outbound destinations, indicating that a majority of rides either start or end in the City. The least percentage of trips are users who simply pass through the City (14%).
City Council has also approved a contract to hire a consultant, Toole Design Group, to develop permitting requirements for a potential permanent dockless micro-mobility program. However, Council has directed staff only to undertake the community survey scope of work and conduct a statistically valid survey targeting West Hollywood residents to inform whether the City Council should establish a permanent dockless micro-mobility program.
The program has generated a total of 449,730 trips since July 2021, and it has saved approximately 75 metric tons (75,000 kg) of CO2 emissions.
[…] Hollywood is telling Bird and Lime to clean up the mess their electric rental scooters are making in the city — or pay […]
I can’t stand thede scooters! Lazy people should buy a bike. Not an electric one either accept if you are crippled or unable to ride a normal.bike. Get out and have fun exercising!
Keep the scooters. They aren’t hurting anyone.
These are a menace to humanity because the people who ride them lean communist. Throw them out of a helicopter, and the scooters as well.
First, it’s ridiculous that 3 individuals have made 60% of the complaints. I walk an average of about 2.5 miles per day around this City and have maybe come across 10 scooters that were either knocked over and/or blocking the sidewalk in the past 6 months, which I stood upright and/or moved them to the side. I question how many of those complaints are legitimately safety related. Second, complaints about scooters DO NOT equate to opposition of scooters. At least one of the complaints submitted was by me and I fully support allowing scooters. I also believe riders should be… Read more »
I agree. The whiners are definitely in the minority. Always looking for something to complain about.
The benefits of the scooters are completely undermined by the inconsiderate, juvenile users while riding on the sidewalks and leaving the Lime litter anywhere convenient for them. Had this been an equitable deal for the city it would have been more palatable but this is bad behavior on every front. The city staff needs to grow up and be realistic about evaluating new concepts like the scooters. When will the residents of West Hollywood also grow up?
Best to outlaw them. They are a nonsense and very dangerous!!!! Buy a normal bike and do not be lazy with scooters and electric bike unless you are crippled or unable to ride a normal bike. Get out and have fun!
As a resident of the east side, I have seen a revolution of commuters using these on-demand scooters. It’s a real joy to see so many people embracing an eco friendly mode of transportation. As for the dangers people are bringing up, let’s not forget that cars are far more dangerous to pedestrians and other drivers than a scooter. I walk very often and have nearly been hit by several cars just this year….a scooter, never. As far as taking up the right of way, I think their small form factor is a plus, not a deterant. Yes riders need… Read more »
I walk all over and have had more problems with scooters than drivers. YMMV?
“The pilot program has seen a total of 1,452 complaints, with approximately 60% reported by three individuals.” Am I reading this correctly? Three individuals represent 60% of complaints? Was this the petition? Who can clarify? Thanks.
Obsessed with Bird. European transplant here
If the program ends, buying one will be the next step.
What’s with the Nazi’s on here. Who cares about scooters so much you get angry? This is WEHO not some conservative straight boring rich area. We should be accepting all ways of alternative transportation, closing car lanes and creating lanes designated for bikes, scooters, and other small vehicles. The only reason there might be accidents is based on the fact they don’t have space to ride bikes and scooters.
Hear! Hear!
End the program! If you talk to any ER nurse at Cedars or the people that work at the local urgent cares, scooter collisions are a significant portion of their patients! Second, do we really want to live amongst scattered scooters on the sidewalk? They are a total eyesore! The streets look like a children’s playground.
It actually is a children’s playground, designed by children that were unable to balance the potential pre and cons prior to implementation. Would like to know the comprehensive cost to the city including compensation to staff, consultants and continuing liabilities both financial and real damages.
exactly! And that is part of what I am going to be saying to the City Council on Monday… Whether they want to hear it or not!
please consider speaking up in public comment on Monday. If you cannot attend, please write a short email to council@weho.org
End the e-transit programs! Period.