An option to extend the electric scooter pilot program in Oshawa until 2029 is on the agenda for Monday’s Economic and Development Services Committee meeting, with a staff report recommending approval.
The program has not been without controversy, with its darkest moment happening just three weeks after it was launched in the spring of 2023 when 20-year-old Kaitlyn Pollack was struck and killed by a truck at the entrance of a gas station in the north end of the city on May 17, 2023.
Oshawa Councillor Rosemary McConkey, who was very vocal at the time about wanting the program suspended until staff and the two vendors could investigate increasing safety, is not a member of the committee but will be in attendance Monday, noting that she continues to have a “less than favorable opinion” on the program.
City staff, in collaboration with e-scooter vendors Neuron Mobility and Bird Canada, have been able to address many of the safety issues through increased public awareness and education, according to a report being released Monday at committee.
Most of the concerns raised by the public have centred on parking issues – 231 of 243 complaints were about leaving the scooters in the middle of sidewalks or in local ravines – and on poor rider behaviour.
The report noted that “numerous concerns” related to sidewalk riding were related to privately owned e-scooters not part of the pilot project. E-mobility devices are not allowed to be operated on sidewalks and the vendors demonstrated a “decreased tolerance for sidewalk riding which resulted in rider suspensions from their apps when this behaviour was witnessed by their staff,” the report stated.
Durham Police reported six collisions involving an E-mobility device in the first year of the program – including the fatality – and there were 40 collisions reported to vendors (generally minor in nature) in 2023 and 2024.
Despite the issues, users took to the program quickly, especially among students and other young people.
Oshawa residents and visitors took approximately 200,000 E-mobility rides and travelled some 377,000 kilometres during the first two seasons of the pilot program, which kicked off April 25, 2023. Nearly 4,500 riders in took 10 trips or more in 2023 and about 2,000 riders took 10 trips or more in 2024.
The second year of the program began on April 1, 2024. The season ends at the end of November each year.
Tito-Dante Marimpietri, who chairs the committee, said he was “surprised” the pilot program became as popular as it did, especially among youth and students.
“As the student capital of Durham Region, transportation options such as these matter and make a difference to the daily activity of many,” Marimpietri said. “Alternative modes of transportation are quickly evolving as options for communities like ours from coast to coast and around the world.”
Marimpietri acknowledged there have been “challenges’ in rolling out the program that have to be “addressed and mitigated” but the merits of e-scooters in Oshawa mean the city needs to at least consider continuing the service.
“Order and safety are absolutely paramount which means the companies involved must take more responsibility on where they are parked and how these units are used.”
Although the number of concerns compared to the total number of rides was very low (less than 0.5 per cent of total rides), the report noted that it is “understood” that not all incidents of improper parking or improper riding may have been reported. “Improving the program to minimize accessibility impacts is a necessity for moving forward.”
Both vendors began the season operating in smaller deployment areas around Ontario Tech University and Durham College, Lakeview Park and downtown Oshawa and gradually increased the service areas.
Some localized areas such as parking garages, recreational centres and skateboard parks were geofenced as ‘no ride zones’ which prohibited riders from entering. E-mobility devices were also not allowed to be ridden on sidewalks or on interlocking pathways at Lakeview Park.
The operating speed of the shared E-mobility devices was limited to 20 km/hr and the e-bikes were ‘geofenced’ to maximum of 15 km/hr on recreational trails and some high use park walkways.
Surveys taken at the end of each season found that the most common reason for riding an E-mobility device in 2023 was for leisure and recreation (53 per cent) and commuting to work or study (41 per cent). The 2024 survey results flipped those numbers, with 58 per cent of riders using the e-scooters to get to work or school and 40 per cent using them for leisure.
The report also found the percentage of riders using E-scooters to connect to or from public transit spiked from 20 per cent in 2023 to 30 per cent in 2024. “E-mobility devices serve as a first and last kilometre travel solution.”
The vendor’s end of the year survey results also showed that many shorter trips by E-mobility devices replaced a trip that would have been taken by car. Nearly 45 per cent of trips replaced car journeys, in fact, resulting in reduced congestion and carbon emissions.
Approximately 14 per cent of respondents in 2023 and 17 per cent in 2024 said they would not have made the trip if the were not available. As well, about 10 per cent of riders have a disability or mobility impairment, which makes it difficult for them to walk long distances or for extended periods of time.
The staff report is recommending a few changes to the fee structure. Trip fees would be 15 cents per trip (they were 20 cents in 2023 and 10 cents in 2024), with the vehicle fee increasing from $50 per season in 2024 to $60.
As well, the compliance fee charged by the city for moving or impounding improperly parked vehicles would be increased from $100 to $250 and the license fee bumped from $5,000 per season to $10,000.
Staff also recommend the fleet size be limited to 500 E-mobility devices (down from 700) and areas for parking and deployment be restricted
Oshawa generated more than $70,000 in 2023 and $51,000 more as of Q3 of 2024 from the program. The fees collected allowed for the recovery of costs for services such as a subscription to a data monitoring platform, city-led communication and education activities (Bike Month, Shape Oshawa), and support from Community and Operations Services, Corporate Communications, Engineering Services, Finance Services, Municipal Law Enforcement and Licensing Services and Service Oshawa staff.
The Town of Ajax has been participating in the Province’s pilot program since 2023 and recently extended the contract to continue until 2029. The City of Pickering will be starting its program in 2025.
The Province has already extended the pilot for an additional until 2029, which will allow for more time to collect and analyze data, providing a more “robust understanding” of the program’s outcomes and helping to inform future policy direction, the staff report declared.
