I Rode an E-Scooter and I Kind of Hated It
Hello! This blog post is a small break from my recent series about Montreal.
It had been a bit since I visited the Waterloo Region, and since my last visit, the city has gotten Neuron-branded e-bikes and e-scooters. Since I had a coupon for Neuron, and the LRT was down through downtown Kitchener, I figured now would be a good time to try out an e-scooter. As well, because I regularly use BikeShare in Toronto and Bixi in Montreal, I would be able to compare the micromobility systems.
Having taken my first ride on Neuron, from Laurier--Waterloo Park LRT Station to Charles Street Bus Terminal, I can say that I really did not enjoy the system. The focus on technology over functionality, and the overpolicing of mobility outside of cars makes the system unenjoyable, and quite the hassle to use.
In this blog post, I will outline some of my problems with the e-scooters, and offer suggestions on how to make micro-mobility work in Waterloo Region. Apologies for the portrait photos, as these were all taken directly from their mobile app.
Coverage
The Neuron system is focussed mostly on downtown Kitchener and uptown Waterloo. These two areas are the most dense parts of the city, so there's a large amount of destinations that micromobility would be good for. That said, the area that can be used is relatively narrow, and there are even more destinations just outside the service area that you can't ride to. There are even enclaves within the service area that you can't ride to.
While I think focussing on a small area for a pilot is good, you completely miss a huge number of opportunities. Downtown Kitchener, for example, has great transit access and is very walkable. The number of new trips that Neuron provides are relatively low when compared to, say, a suburban subdivision that is otherwise very far from transit. Waterloo Region is extremely low-density suburban, yet there are many multi-use trails outside of the core. To not leverage the infrastructure provided in this pilot, to me, is a clear mistake.
One other issue related to coverage is specificity of the service area. You can use Neuron along the Laurel Trail through the University of Waterloo, but you are not permitted to bring vehicles into the campus on either side of the trail. Despite micromobility like this being a huge opportunity for last mile trips, UW's opting out of the program completely ruins this. Lastly, some areas allow you to ride, but have one specific parking location. Near Strasburg and Ottawa, as seen below, the only parking location is at GRT's Strasburg Garage, so any trip not ending there is difficult to do.
The E-Scooters Themselves
I liked that a helmet was provided, but I did not like the e-scooters much beyond that. Some of these complaints I have fall within the technology category as well.
Firstly, you have two brakes, one on each handle. The accelerator is in the middle of the right handle. It becomes difficult to accelerate because, even with my big hands, I have a tough time reaching the accelerator while keeping my hand on the brake. I kept stopping and starting throughout my trip, and couldn't keep a consistent speed.
My second issue is the bell. On BikeShare and Bixi, the bikes are equipped with standard bells. On Neuron, however, the e-scooters have a button that emits a ringing noise. This button takes a solid three to four seconds to emit the noise, which is totally useless. I think this is a huge safety issue, but it seemingly has not attracted as many complaints as I would have expected.
Back in the late 1980s, every amusement park wanted a stand-up roller coaster. However, it didn't take long for people to realize that they can be a bit painful: you feel every bump. This is exactly how I felt about e-scooters versus e-bikes: on the bike, you have some bumps, but it's no issue. On the scooter, however, you feel every. Single. Bump. You're just uncomfortable nearly immediately, which is terrible. This is one issue that I really can't resolve, unless paths are perfectly smooth, you'll feel it.
Technology
As the name 'Neuron' may suggest, there's a sort of techy-feel to these vehicles, which matches perfectly with Waterloo Region! However, the technology is a bit flawed, and it becomes very annoying very quickly. I've already mentioned some of the tech issues, specifically related to the bell, but I have a few more.
As identified in the maps above, low-speed zones are instituted on mixed-use trails, and in some other spots, at 15 km/h, and there is an overall speed limiter of 20 km/h. This is fine, mostly. E-scooters are permitted on all roads with a speed limit of 50 km/h, but it feels dangerous to be using vehicles limited at speeds less than half that on-road. You can't ever really feel safe riding on these streets. The 15 km/h limit is annoying because of how close it is to the 20 km/h limit. You're riding near max speed, but not quite! Additionally, if the GPS tracks you through a low-speed zone, a ding noise will play. I thought this was if you went over the speed limit, but no, it plays the entire time. It gets irritating after five dings. You also get occasionally verbal warnings from the scooter, but I feel dinging when over the speed only would be more than sufficient. Even when I figured how to put the scooter into low-speed mode, it kept warning me, even though I literally could not go any faster.
One rule is that e-scooters cannot be used on sidewalks, which I agree with. If you are riding on a sidewalk, you get a verbal announcement, and the motor shuts off. This would be fine, but the focus on using GPS is your main enemy. If I'm travelling on a bike path adjacent to a sidewalk, sometimes the GPS thinks I'm on the sidewalk, so the motor shuts off. When I was on the Iron Horse Trail, crossing Victoria, my motor shut off as I about to go through, because it registered me as being on the sidewalk. Um, yes? I have to cross the sidewalk to keep going? This happened a few more times, and it was stupid because it was unavoidable. It even occurred on a stretch of Gaukel, which has been shut entirely to cars. There is no defined sidewalk, yet Neuron just assumed there was.
Sidenote: I do like the Gaukel pop-up park a lot.
The GPS also makes parking your scooter hard. First, there are no spots marked on the street, they can only be seen on your phone, which Neuron makes sure you are aware you can't use when riding. The circles for parking are so small, you end up just dragging the scooter around. I found a good parking spot away from seating, and not in the way of the sidewalk, adjacent to the Charles Street Bus Terminal, but it was just outside the circle. Because there were other Neuron vehicles in most of the circle, the only place I could park it was partly in the way of the sidewalk. How stupid.
I want to note, my phone has a good GPS, and I was having issues. I have seen other people complain about much worse issues that me. If I found Neuron that exhausting to use, imagine them!
Pricing
Neuron is expensive! First, as soon as you scan a vehicle, it starts, despite a few things happening before you can ride. First, you need to unlock the helmet, then put adjust it and put it on. Then, you need to do a brake check, then you need to put your phone away, and then you can ride. I wasted a solid two minutes getting ready. On a system that charges by minute, you would have already spent $1.85 without moving. On BikeShare, I can put on my helmet, check my bike tires, and check my brakes, before I unlock, meaning between unlocking and getting going, I waste maybe fifteen seconds.
Despite my trip being a mere 25 minutes, covering 5.6km, and having a $2 coupon, I paid $9.32 for my trip. This is actually ridiculous. While it's cool to try it, the price is just far too much for something that could be done in a similar time on transit. While there are monthly passes, for unlimited rides up to 90 minutes, they cost $89 a month. My yearly BikeShare, without my employer's discount, would have been $115 this year. Sure, my trips are 45 minute maximum, and e-bikes are an upcharge on that, but the upcharge being only $0.10 makes it much more reasonable. Literally the day after I used Neuron, I brought an e-bike from Queen and Spadina to Victoria Park and Dawes. Despite overage fees and the e-bike upcharge, the 13.9km trip cost me $4.20. That's quite the difference.
The Two Fundamental Issues
As I mentioned at the start of this piece, there are two fundamental problems with Neuron. The first is technology: this focus on GPS, as well as minor things like the bell 'button' make travelling with e-scooters unenjoyable. BikeShare and Bixi are popular and fun because you unlock your bike and GO! I can physically see BikeShare stations to park at when I end my trip. Neuron has made micromobility a challenge for anyone who wants to use it.
The second is overpolicing. As a pedestrian, I hate when bikes speed around you, so limiting speed is a good thing. But also, as a pedestrian, I have a much bigger issue with cars. It seems wild to force e-scooters to cap out at 20 km/h, but a car driving 200 km/h, while illegal, is not impossible to do. Neuron claims to be 'safe', but why is that a necessity when automobile manufactures don't care about this? Once again, the burden of safety is placed squarely on the heads of the most vulnerable road users, instead of those that have the most responsibility. It's disheartening in Waterloo Region, a place with a large cycling infrastructure network, to still view as cyclists as the problem, and not drivers.
I would love to bike all across Waterloo Region, but Neuron is not helping me do that.
Conclusion
While I think it's a good idea that many cities are buying into micromobility, the obsession with little rules and technological 'innovation' makes systems like Neuron feel more like check boxes than solutions to actual transportation problems. Regional politicians can go around bragging that they have an expansive network of e-bikes and e-scooters, but they are functional for only a small group of people. It does little to solve some of the low-hanging fruit in terms of Waterloo Region's transportation problems. I guess I'll stick with BikeShare and Bixi.
Comments
Post a Comment