Launceston and Hobart Councils to consider report on rental e-Scooter trial

The final reports on a trial of e-Scooters in both the City of Launceston and City of Hobart will be considered in coming days.

The trial has not sought to determine whether e-scooters should or should not be allowed to operate in Tasmania; rather it has provided a formal mechanism for the Councils to play an advocacy role in managing the introduction of e-scooters to their cities, to better understand how e-scooters have been used, and to identify opportunities for future improvement.

Rental e-Scooters were introduced in the two cities last December, following regulatory changes from the State Government which allow both private and rental e-scooters to be used on most local roads, footpaths and cycling trails across the State.

The City of Launceston and the City of Hobart have worked with the State Government and private e-scooter hire-and-ride operators Beam (purple) and Neuron (orange) on the trial. 

In Launceston, data on rental e-Scooters was collected between December 18, 2021, and December 17, 2022, with the cooperation of commercial operators Beam and Neuron.

The City of Launceston's report has considered feedback on rental e-Scooters from the community, riders, community groups and other relevant stakeholders.

It has analysed rental e-Scooter usage, parking, and safety considerations, and contains a suite of recommendations for future commercial e-Scooter operations in the Launceston municipality.

The recommendations include:

• Determining clearer delineation of roles and responsibilities between Councils, the State Government, commercial operators, Tasmania Police and other stakeholders.

• Introducing permit conditions which require commercial operators to deliver safety campaigns and include consistent reporting requirements.

• Designating dedicated e-Scooter parking spaces in high-activity areas.

• Introducing signage changes.

• Continuing advocacy to the State Government for legislative alignment and consistency, including reporting metrics.

The City of Launceston is expected to consider its e-Scooter Trial Evaluation at its Council meeting on Thursday, 23rd February.

Two e-scooter hire-and-ride operators have been approved to operate in Hobart under a 12-month trial – Beam (purple) and Neuron (orange).

The microbility trial is being examined by the newly elected Hobart Council and its future will be determined at a council vote early in 2023. To give the elected members, particularly those new to Council, time to understand the public sentiment, issues and data generated by the introduction of hire-and-ride scooters in Hobart, the trial has been extended by three months, to March 2023.

Under the terms of the trial, the operators are responsible for all aspects of managing use of their products in the City of Hobart area. The City will monitor their operations as part of the trial agreement.

Image top: Credit: City of Hobart; Image above: Credit: City of Launceston