Lime and Bird e-scooters have been allowed in the city of West Hollywood under a pilot program since 2020. (photo by Rance Collins)

After a contentious public comment period, the West Hollywood City Council voted 3-2 at its Oct. 16 meeting to allow the dockless micro-mobility program to continue into its next phase. A draft program agreement will be presented to the program operators, including the scooter companies Lime and Bird, to make dockless mobility a permanent feature in the city.

While city staff has conducted surveys that indicated support for e-scooters and e-bikes was split evenly among residents, a large contingent of opponents of the devices was present at the meeting. Many were associated with the West Hollywood Disabilities Advisory Board, waging complaints about the sidewalk hazards presented by e-scooters.

According to former advisory board member Mikie Friedman, West Hollywood has become a less walkable city because scooters are left in pedestrian pathways and whiz past residents on sidewalks.

“All sidewalks violations are ADA violations, and should be fined as such. Bottom line: ban the scooters. Give us back ‘WeHo, the most walkable city’ and end ‘WeHo, the walk at your own risk city,’” Friedman said.

“I’ve had personal experience with tripping over one of these damn scooters. Fortunately, I didn’t break a bone or anything, but I could have,” resident Murray Aronson said. “Whenever I walk around the city – and this is almost every day – I run into scooters in the most inconvenient places, by bus stops, by crosswalks. And I consider myself fortunate that I haven’t had more accidents. Now, a friend of mine … did fall and trip over a scooter and broke his arm. So, it happens all the time.”

The saga for dockless mobility in West Hollywood dates back several years, when a previous bicycle program, WeHo Pedals, was suspended in 2018, after staff was directed to find a better alternative. In 2020, the City Council approved a pilot program that included contracts with Lime, Bird and Wheels, and the program launched in the summer of 2021. Amendments to the pilot were made in 2022 and 2023, as attempts to address community concerns.

“My concerns about the program are related to safety for the riders and for pedestrians on the sidewalks,” said Councilman John Heilman, who voted “no” on the program’s continuance. “We’ve tried to mitigate the safety concerns, but unfortunately some of the people riding the scooters don’t obey the rules. We shouldn’t continue a program until it’s clear that it can be operated safely for everyone in the community.”

Councilwoman Lauren Meister also voted “no” over the same issues.

“I voted against extending the dockless micro-mobility program because I haven’t seen where the program has improved since the day a bunch of e-scooters were dumped on our streets without permission or permits,” Meister said. “Unfortunately, e-devices pose a threat to our residents – whether they be older adults, adults with disabilities, parents with their kids or pet guardians and their dogs. Riding on sidewalks, abandoning e-devices in the public right-of-way, not following basic traffic laws such as stopping at a red light or stop sign. While there are some benefits, I believe that the negative impacts outweigh the positive.”

Meister did present an amendment to the item, however, with the knowledge it was likely to pass. She focused on the penalties for scooter-related incidents, including accidents and leaving scooters in public rights-of-way.

“Before the motion was approved by three of my colleagues, I asked that fines be progressive, otherwise, they would not be a disincentive,” she said. “I also asked that insurance per incident be increased from $10,000 to $100,000. Do I think these disincentives will help? I guess time will tell.”

There was a total of 20 dockless mobility-related collisions reported to the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station between July 2021 and August 2023. Two of these were between scooters and pedestrians, while 18 involved scooters and motor vehicles. A total of 1,780 complaints were logged in roughly the same period, with the majority of complaints regarding sidewalk blockage. Between the contracted companies, the city allows for a maximum of 100 e-bikes and 360 e-scooters. The companies are expected to help regulate the devices and keep them out of the way of pedestrians and motor vehicles.

Since the pilot’s launch, more than 500,000 trips have been recorded, adding up to over 700,000 miles of use. 2023 has seen a decline in dockless mobility use, from a peak of 27,814 trips in October 2022 to 14,754 last month. City staff said that is similar to summer trends in other metropolitan areas that allow e-devices.

“The pilot program, which is not without its problems, has been successful,” Mayor Pro Tempore John Erickson said. “Whether it’s the number of trips taken over the last two years, or the resident-only phone survey that showed support, residents are choosing this way to travel. We placed many restrictions on these companies and are looking at studying the actual impact they have on decreasing cars on our streets. The council majority worked to find common sense compromises to keep this mode of transit for the community, and it’s important we did so in a time where climate change caused by cars is harming not only the planet but also people with the accident numbers that we reviewed as part of the item too. It’s time for us to move on, and I’m glad we came to a final decision.”