A staff report is recommending Coquitlam extend its shared e-bike and e-scooter pilot program until March 31, 2027, and possibly another year beyond that.
Jamie Boan, the city’s general manager of engineering and public works, said since the program launched on June 29, 2023, more than 106,000 trips have been made by over 15,000 different users. An overwhelming majority — 94 per cent — were done on the e-scooters.
Boan said the average trip went about 1.8 km and lasted 12 minutes. Most of them start or end in the Town Centre area where the devices must be left in dockless parking zones.
The busiest times for the service were in the evenings after 7 p.m. and on weekends.
In his report, Boan said use of the micromobility devices dipped last year; there were 55,000 trips taken in the program’s first six months in 2023 but only 45,000 trips in all of 2024.
“Trips in 2023 reflected strong interest in trying out a new mobility option,” Boan said.
Growing pains included residents’ complaints about the devices being left on boulevards and sidewalks and the general unsightliness in the parts of Coquitlam where the e-scooters and e-bikes could be left anywhere.
Boan said the operators have since installed 34 additional dockless parking stations and the fleet was reduced from 450 of the devices in July 2024, to 231.
“These actions resulted in improved parking compliance and performance metrics,” Boan said.
As for safety, Boan said Coquitlam RCMP reported only two files involving e-scooters from the pilot program in 2024 — one was a minor accident with a motor vehicle and the other was a complaint that multiple users were weaving in and out of traffic.
Boan added, since the program’s launch, Coquitlam Fire and Rescue responded to 17 injury calls involving e-scooters, although it’s unknown how many of those were from the sharing program.
Boan said should council agree to extend the pilot program, it will happen with only one operator, as Neuron has advised the city it will be pulling out its bright orange devices.
“While there can be advantages for a city in having two vendors compete, it can also be a challenge for each vendor to garner sufficient market share,” he said.
Other considerations should the program continue, Boan said, should be the implementation of mandatory dockless parking stations across the whole service area and an expansion of the program to include the River Springs and Burke Mountain neighbourhoods.
Coquitlam council will consider the report at its meeting tonight, Feb. 24.
📣 Got an opinion on this story or any others in the Tri-Cities? Send us a letter or email your thoughts or story tips to [email protected].
📲 Want to stay updated on Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra news? Sign up for our free daily newsletter.
💬 Words missing in an article? Your adblocker might be preventing hyperlinked text from appearing.
