Like them or not, e-scooters are changing commuter culture across Adelaide and beyond
The founder of Australia’s newest e-scooter start-up says they foresaw how it could change our cities forever – and Adelaide was one of the best places for it.
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Tom Cooper remembers riding a push scooter around Adelaide’s eastern suburbs as a child.
It was among the best ways to and from the local deli to pick up a Red Skin and a Milko – it was a quick, environmentally friendly way of getting around.
Little did he know that years he would bring an electric version similar to that scooter to CBD streets.
Mr Cooper is the driving force behind Australian start up RIDE, which was one of two companies last week rolling out fleets of e-scooters on to city streets.
Earlier this month, RIDE, along with Singaporean company BEAM, won an Adelaide City Council tender to each bring up to 500 scooters to Adelaide until October.
Mr Cooper, who started with RIDE in January, first saw electric scooters while travelling overseas, and thought they would be a valuable mode of transport in the Adelaide CBD.
“We saw them last year for the first time in Europe, they are everywhere there, and we just saw how easy it was to get around,” Mr Cooper says.
“We saw how it could potentially change Australian cities … and Adelaide struck me as one of the best places in Australia for it.”
E-scooters have proven popular since the State Government changed regulations to allow scooters on footpaths, with more than 150,000 rides taken since February.
San Francisco company Lime rolled out the first fleet on roads, however, its permit was not extended because of perceived safety issues.
Users download an app that allows them to locate and hire a scooter on their smartphone, changing the face of urban transport.
When their final destination is reached, the user parks the scooter and then walks away.
RIDE and Beam scooters cost $1 to unlock then 25 and 30 cents a minute thereafter respectively.
“Premier Steven Marshall and Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor have said they want to attract more people to the CBD, and the best way to do that is through e-sccoters – they make it easier to get around,” Mr Cooper says.
“Rather than jumping in an Uber and travelling five minutes, they are jumping on a scooter and it is taking the same amount of time.
“That is the holy grail of what we are trying to achieve.”
Beam and RIDE secured permits to operate in the CBD for the next six months after Adelaide City Council gave Lime the boot.
The council told Lime, which operates in 130 markets around the world, that it had to calibrate its scooters so they would stop at the “geo-fenced” CBD boundary.
The company said there could be a “public safety issue” if the scooters stopped abruptly and called for an independent review of the council’s expressions of interest process.
Adelaide City Council Mark Goldstone ruled that out.
Beam’s head of public affairs Brad Kitschke, who says his company’s scooters pose no safety threat, believes “micro mobility” is changing the way the city operates.
They are a way of beating gridlock in dense urban area, and a great way of getting from A to B.
“People test them out as a bit of a novelty at first, but then they realise it is a reliable way of getting around the city,” Mr Kitschke says.
“Now, you see people using them as they go to and from meetings in the city, or to and from public transport stops (within the CBD).”
And he says people in the suburbs should not miss out on fun.
The company has been in discussions with councils including Port Adelaide Enfield, Charles Sturt, Prospect, Campbelltown, Norwood, Payneham & St Peters, Holdfast Bay, West Torrens and Victor Harbour councils “for a number of months” about potential roll outs.
“We see providing services to those communities just as important as providing services for the people in the City of Adelaide,” Mr Kitschke says.
“They are all keen to see the outcome of the City of Adelaide trial … we did not just see the CBD as the jewel in the crown.”
West Torrens Mayor Michael Coxon says he has “serious concerns about safety” because the area’s footpaths in the area are already congested, while Norwood, Payneham & St Peters Mayor Robert Bria was unsure if they would work in his area, but was open to further discussions.
West Torrens gave staff the go ahead for a report into a Lime trial in the district.
Adelaide City Council Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor has embraced the concept and has noticed a change in urban transport around the city since the arrival of e-scooters.
“You see lots of people using them when they are going between meetings and, sometimes, rather than waiting for a tram they’ll hop on a scooter and shoot down to where they have to go,” she says.
In fact, she has used one herself, in high heels, to quickly get from one side of the city to another.
“They are very convenient … it was a great trip,” she says.
“I do believe people are choosing scooters as an easy way to commute and that is a good thing.”
State Government Transport Minister Mr Knoll, who reiterates that it is illegal to ride personal scooters on footpaths, says it is exciting to see South Australia embrace the initiative.
“We are interested in looking at how these e-scooters can be used more and more to deliver first and last mile solutions in the long run,” Mr Knoll says.
Even though RIDE has only been operating for a week, Mr Cooper says there is still more to achieve.
He hopes by the end of the trial he hopes to see more cars off the road, reducing congestion and carbon emissions.
It would help the state get closed to its goal of zero net emissions by 2050, and get the council closer to its hope of becoming the first carbon-neutral city.
But something he does not want to see change are the smiles of riders having a leisurely ride or commuting from point A to B.
“That’s the best bit,” Mr Cooper says
“You never see anyone unhappy … it gives us such a thrill.”
How the scooters companies compare
RIDE
Origin: Melbourne, Australia
Year business started: 2018
Number of scooters in fleet worldwide: 850
Number of scooters in SA: 500
Maximum speed: 27km/h, but limited in Adelaide to 15km/h
Safety features: Wider handlebars, dual brake, battery in the base so lower centre of gravity, rear wheel drive and adjustable height handlebars.
LIME
Origin: San Francisco, US
Year business started: 2017
Number of scooters in fleet worldwide: Wouldn’t share for commercial reasons
Number of scooters in SA: 500
Maximum speed: 15km/h in Adelaide
Safety features: 25cm diameter wheels, a front suspension system, multi-modal braking, a Linux-powered tip detection system, IP67 waterproofing and a 7cm colour display dashboard. The headlight and rear light are always turned on when the scooter is in use. Scooters capped at 15km/h and Lime have developed a series of educational videos,
dedicated instructional pages and in-app messages to ensure riders know and abide by applicable rules and regulations.
BEAM
Origin: Singapore
Year business started: 2018
Number of scooters in fleet worldwide: Would not reveal total numbers
Number of scooters in SA: 500
Maximum speed: 15km/h speed cap in SA as mandated by the Government
Safety features: Front and back brake, ability to slow scooter to a stop in specific areas, 15kmh speed cap, advanced e-scooter tracking.
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