The latest app-sharable addition to the Chicago-area transportation landscape is a dockless electric scooter.
A new study by Jacques and Joe Schwieterman of Depaul’s Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development says e-scooters could be an alternative to cars and a link to public transportation.
"It seems like in that 0.5 to to two-mile range, they really help people get to the 'L' station...get to that bus…get to that Divvy bike," said Mathew Jacques with the Chaddick Institute. "It sort of decreases the amount of walking you have."
But for longer trips (those over three miles) e-scooters would not be as cost effective as DIVVY bikes and Transit.
“It comes down to convenience and we find that a lot of consumers really value their time and especially the ease and comfort of their travel time,” says Jacques.
The study however, does not envision scooters as a replacement for Divvy bikes or anything else for that matter; rather as part of a much larger transportation ecosystem.
“I thinks it’s great…I think you would be a little bit quicker and comfortable,” said local Cathy Byrd.
Local
The study also concedes that the scooters are one more mode of transportation that will have to share the road.
“I think we always have to talk about sharing the roads and thinking about…pedestrians,” said Jacques.
Chicago is conducting a pilot e-scooter program on the South Side, allowing them to operate on the streets during certain summer festivals to evaluate where the new technology could go next.
