Next steps from the city on scooter parking

The two-wheeled vehicle forum was just step one in a longer conversation. Councilmembers Sally Clark and Jan Drago sent the Vespa Club of Seattle and other organizations involved a letter tallying up our concerns, and listing out next steps for the city.

For those who missed it, the entire session, it turns out, was recorded and released on the Seattle Channel. Sally Clark also blogged about the meeting.

Here's the meat of the email (the first part of the letter is below the jump):

We are committed to improving the scooter environment in Seattle! Below is a list of actions that we, and our staff, plan to take, based on the issues and concerns raised at the forum and through your emails. We'll provide an update and summary on the status of the next steps in early June.

ISSUE: Laws: Car drivers can now "legally" move scooters.

NEXT STEP: Councilmembers will contact the City's law department and the Police Department to find out what laws are "on the books." A law to prohibit moving parked vehicles may be needed.

ISSUE: Safety Education and clarity of existing laws

NEXT STEPS: Councilmembers will work with the Seattle Department of Transportation to create a website for scooters. The website can include information about safety tips and explain current laws are for two-wheeled vehicles.

ISSUE: Parking

NEXT STEPS:

1. Councilmembers will consult with the Seattle Department of Transportation to find out if they have a plan to address increased scooter ridership in dense neighborhoods. They will also find out where there is designated parking now and if additional parking is planned.
2. Councilmember Drago and staff will contact the Parking Garage Owners and Operators Association to see if a proposal could work to provide discounted daily or monthly parking for scooters.
3. Councilmember Clark and staff will research the possibility of issuing a monthly or quarterly parking pass to scooter/motorcycle drivers. Research will include the feasibility, appropriate cost, administration, etc. SDOT is also providing "pay by space" meters on Westlake Ave, west of South Lake Union. Can this technology be used as scooter designated spaces? CM Clark and staff will determine the feasibility.

ISSUE: Scooter Parking Map

NEXT STEPS: The Seattle Department of Transportation indicated that they could provide a scooter parking map on-line. Council will follow-up to make sure that is feasible.

ISSUE: Moped theft and parking

NEXT STEPS: Research the definition a "moped." Research the feasibility of allowing mopeds to park on sidewalks and/or lock-up at bike racks.

ISSUE: Traffic signal sensitivity

NEXT STEPS: Ask SDOT to review current standard signal sensitivity, report back to Council.

HERE'S THE REST OF THE LETTER

As all of you know, we hosted a motorcycle and scooter forum on Tuesday, March 11th to hear concerns, challenges, thoughts and ideas from scooter, moped and motorcycle riders in Seattle. More than 90 people came to hear from a panel of speakers and share experiences about what it's like to use two-wheeled motor vehicles in the city.

We've composed a summary of issues and concerns we heard at the forum and from your emails. These are listed in the attached document with a list of possible solutions, research still to be conducted and notable facts heard at the forum. Lastly, and probably the most important, are issues and next steps that we will begin to take in the weeks and months ahead.

For those of you unable to attend, the forum was recorded by the Seattle Channel and can be viewed at:

http://seattlechannel.org/videos/video.asp?ID=2070802.

Thank you all for taking the time to get involved in the future of Seattle's transportation system. Please feel free to contact either of our offices with your questions or concerns. We look forward to making Seattle an even better place for scooters, mopeds and motorcycles.

Sincerely,

Sally J. Clark and Jan Drago

Sally J. Clark

Seattle City Council

600 Fourth Ave., 2nd Floor

PO Box 34025

Seattle, WA 98104-1860

(206) 684-8802 office, (206) 684-8587 fax, (206) 233-0025 TTY

sally.clark@seattle.gov

Scooter/Motorcycle Parking Forum

Summary and Next Steps

Panelists

Councilmember Sally J. Clark

Councilmember Jan Drago

Susan Richardson, Vespa Club of Seattle

Seth Bedwell, Mosquito Fleet

Dan Nolte, Office of Councilmember Sally Clark

Captain Fred Hill, Seattle Police Department

Mike Estey, Seattle Department of Transportation

Lauren Briel, Urban Mobility Group

Issues/Concerns

• Laws and regulations regarding two-wheeled vehicles unclear amongst riders/enforcement agencies
• Safety campaign for two-wheel community – safety for riders and safety for drivers of larger vehicles
• Lack of two-wheel on-street parking
• Cost to use private parking garages – paying the same as single cars
• Not sure where two-wheel vehicles fit into the transportation system – between a bike and a car
• Parked scooters are being moved by automobile drivers who want access to their parking space
• No place to put "gear" (helmets, etc.)
• Pavement condition can be problematic
• Intersection – two-wheel vehicles do not "trip" the turning signal because the vehicles are light-weight.
• Mopeds are much smaller that scooters and are easier to be stolen.
• Parking pay stations are difficult to use for two-wheel vehicles – tickets are stolen
• Road "turtles" can be dangerous when crossed
• Lack of parking in dense neighborhoods: downtown, Fremont, Capitol Hill, Queen Anne

Possible Actions

• Clarify laws that may be unclear or poorly defined
• Safety campaign for two-wheel community – safety for riders and safety for drivers of larger vehicles
• Increase on-street designated parking
• Work with the private parking garages – can there be use of "dead space" at a discounted rate?
• Create a Scooter Advisory Committee. Conduct an on-line survey of users, like Portland.
• Create an ordinance making it illegal to move parked motor vehicles (including two-wheel vehicles)
• Rent out lockers for gear storage
• Readjust stoplight signals to recognize two-wheeled riders at intersections
• Allow moped parking at bike racks / sidewalks
• Issuance of parking passes instead of parking tickets – monthly or annual passes
• Allow free two-hour parking for scooters in marked spaces, allow discounted parking for longer term parking needs
• Revert back to parking meters at designated two-wheel parking
• Create a map of parking spaces for two-wheel vehicles – could be on the SDOT website.
• Allow two-wheel vehicles to use 3rd Ave during "transit only" period
• Include the downtown business community in the dialogue about scooters

Research

• How green are they? scooters, mopeds, and motorcycles
  • Green house gas reduction
  • Vehicle Miles Traveled reduction
  • Congestion relief
• Should we include two-wheel vehicles to Seattle's mode shift goal? Provide parking/facilities for the percentage of mode split.
• Is a Scooter Advisory Board necessary in Seattle? Scooter Task Force?
• Review other city policies: London, Paris, Amsterdam, Reykjavik, Kobe, Toronto
• How many two-wheel vehicles can fit into a single car space on-street?
• Research the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) definition of motor scooter or more correctly "scooter-type motorcycle" for regulation enforcement requirements.

Facts/Information

• SDOT processes one million transactions a month at the pay stations
• Pay-by-space is being implemented on Westlake, next to South Lake Union
• About ½ of all scooter vehicles stopped for a traffic infraction are not licensed
• Currently, SDOT only adds two-wheel parking near businesses when requested by a property or business owner
• About 150 dedicated on-street parking spaces right now out of 11,000 on-street parking space
• Toronto, Canada provides free on-street parking for scooters, but not motorcycles.