Dallas residents and visitors may soon have access to electric rental scooters and bikes again as the City prepares to relaunch its shared dockless vehicle program in June.
A memo from Assistant City Manager Robert M. Perez on May 5 announced that a contract with an accountable data vendor should be completed soon, opening the door to electric scooters’ return by June, according to the Dallas Observer.
But some residents are skeptical about the announcement.
“At this point, I’ll believe we are getting scooters back when I see them out on the streets,” Sean Buckley told the Dallas Observer. Buckley is an attorney who frequently used dockless scooters to get around downtown before the program was banned in September 2020.
As The Dallas Express reported, the program was suspended after City officials noted there were several public safety issues that needed to be remedied.
Video footage of scooter riders taking incredible risks appeared on social media.
Rented scooters would also sometimes be left to pile up, fueling complaints, according to the Dallas Observer.
Of course, the relaunch of dockless rentals would be accompanied by new safety features — such as an automatic shutoff switch if riders enter no-go zones — and rules for operating them, as The Dallas Express reported.
To make this possible, the City is partnering with Bird, Lime, and Superpedestrian. Future riders will receive training on how to operate their vehicles correctly and sometimes have to pass a quiz.
With each vendor operating approximately 500 units, the program’s relaunch is expected to include 1,350 scooters, 100 seated scooters, 45 e-bikes, and five assisted scooters.
But prior to the recent memo, City officials have said that scooters would be back by October 2022 and then by the first quarter of 2023, according to the Dallas Observer.
With previous deadlines coming and going without any progress made, it is no wonder some people like Buckley are slow to believe it. The prolonged absence of dockless vehicles has also left a void in the transportation options available to Dallas residents.
A statement from Jennifer Brown, a spokesperson for the City of Dallas, explained in an email to the Dallas Observer that finalizing the contract with the data vendor had suffered delays due to several problems. These were related to insurance and staff turnover in all the departments involved in the program.
As The Dallas Express reported previously, staffing issues have plagued most City departments. Dallas Park and Recreation has been impacted most of all, with a 58% vacancy rating logged in earlier this year.
Enacting the new program depends on a coordinated effort between City officials and vendors to establish no-go and slow-down zones throughout the city. It also requires determining where to place the dockless scooters so they can be best used by as many city residents as possible without disrupting local residences and businesses.
Buckley told the Dallas Observer that he is eager to get back to using scooters to commute, yet expressed concern about what the new rules will do to the convenience of the dockless vehicle program.
“Let’s hope the new regulations they passed capping the number of scooters and regulating their disbursement across the city don’t have the effect of eliminating these as a viable alternative to having to get in your car to go somewhere that is just a little too far to walk,” he said.