Airdrie could soon follow in the footsteps of Calgary, Red Deer, Cochrane, and other Alberta municipalities in offering e-scooters as a form of a local transportation option.
During a regular meeting on April 19, Airdrie City council approved a framework to govern the roll-out of new modes of transportation or “micro-mobility” including e-scooters and e-bikes via a two-year pilot program to be launched later this year.
The motion, which passed unanimously, directs administration to review the relevant bylaws – including transportation and business licensing – in the coming months to permit the use of various forms of micro transportation and to return to council with next steps.
According to Chris MacIsaac, City of Airdrie transit team leader, the deployment of shared mobility devices has grown significantly over the past several years and its growth is anticipated to continue as the community grows and demand for other forms of transport increases.
“This is a very pertinent topic for many municipalities in Alberta and across Canada,” he said. “There has been quite the expansion of shared e-scooter companies that are looking to engage in providing their services in new communities throughout Canada.”
MacIsaac said the City has been approached by various privately-owned e-scooter companies that hope to expand their market to Airdrie, adding Okotoks, Cochrane, Red Deer, and Lethbridge all introduced micro-mobility options in their communities in 2021.
He added the interest in e-transportation voiced by residents and business owners prompted administration to assess the City’s overarching policies, review the applicable bylaws and regulations, and scan other municipalities to determine how best to implement Airdrie’s own micro-mobility program.
“Acknowledging that pedestrians and other modes of transportation are very much supportive of the development of a vibrant and healthy downtown,” he said, “it creates a sense of place and presence in our downtown when you have people moving.”
Rather than focusing solely on e-scooters, MacIsaac said the municipality hopes to implement a program that will govern all types of micro-mobility in the coming years.
“E-scooters themselves are a mode within the broader context of micro-mobility,” he said. “Today it’s e-scooters, in the future it may be e-bikes, e-trikes…We want to ensure the framework we’re creating today is future-proof to ensure new modes of micro-mobility are being included as part of the framework."
In terms of defining micro-mobility, MacIsaac said the research is still in its infancy. He said based on the research that has been done, the City of Airdrie has defined micro-mobility as any small, lightweight vehicle weighing less than 100 kilograms and with a maximum speed of 45 miles per hour. The list of micro-mobility vehicles includes e-scooters, e-bikes, bicycles, skateboards, and pedal-assisted electric bikes (PAEB).
“There isn’t a significant amount of research that’s available within the Canadian context,” he said, adding most of the research that has been done was based out of the U.S., Europe, and Australia. “Micro-mobility is a relatively new term to our industry since 2017.”
He cautioned there are both opportunities and implications to adopting a micro-mobility pilot program.
“With this pilot approach, we can expedite the deployment of shared micro-mobility, so we’re not so restrictive on how we approach this as a municipality,” he said.
There is also an opportunity to establish a framework that will direct the municipality in the future, according to MacIsaac.
He said the program can operate within the existing structure of bylaws and regulations to provide the service to the community in full knowledge there will be adjustments and changes made accounting for experience gained.
“The pilot also allows us to make the amendments to priority bylaws first,” he said. “Bylaws must be enforceable, and we want to make sure any changes to these bylaws account for the service that is being provided.”
One change that will need to be made in consideration of the pilot project will be to revise Airdrie's business licensing bylaw to indicate a maximum number of e-scooters that could be deployed by any single company.
“We would not want to see ourselves in a situation similar to the City of Kelowna, which removed all restrictions and then had an issue in terms of the number of e-scooters that were on their sidewalks,” he said, noting pedestrians there were interrupted by a high number of e-scooters piled up on local pathways.
“We can certainly learn from not only our experience but the experience of other municipalities and implement best practices to ensure that doesn’t become a reality in our community as well.”
In response to the presentation, Couns. Ron Chapman and Tina Petrow both voiced concerns regarding potential accidents on pathways, the use of helmets, and the potential for intoxicated riding. They also wondered aloud how various bylaws might be enforced by local RCMP officers to ensure safety for residents.
MacIsaac responded to say traffic and safety laws still apply, and would continue to be monitored and enforced by the RCMP.
“I think it’s coming. I think it’s worth looking at in other communities. Heck, I might even jump on one and try it,” Chapman said of the e-scooters.
Coun. Al Jones said he worried the City might be rushing the implementation of the pilot program and should pause for thought to ensure bylaws and regulations accommodate equally for both privately owned and shared modes of micro-mobility.
“I’m concerned that we’re zeroing in too quickly and not looking at the overall holistic [picture],” Jones said. “I’m a little cautious about just opening everything up.”
Similarly, Coun. Candice Kolson said she wanted to ensure that regulations are mirrored for both private and shared users of micro-mobility vehicles.
“They are everywhere. They’re using them. It’s happening. I hope that whatever comes forward is fair to both the private users and the public companies,” she said, bringing up how similar projects have worked well in neighbouring municipalities. “I’m excited about this and happy to support it.”
Lastly, MacIsaac noted a pilot project is the best way to approach the deployment of micro-mobility in Airdrie.
“It allows for the adjustments that need to happen and it also signals to any micro-mobility provider or customer that we are trying to build something that works for everyone,” he said. “We’re not going to get it perfect, but this provides an opportunity to make those adjustments to the point where it’s working for our community."
