Should e-scooters be available in Regina every summer? Administration recommendations say yes

The City of Regina is looking to make e-scooters an annual mode of transportation in the Queen City during the snowless months.

According to a public agenda for Wednesday’s executive committee meeting, it’s being recommended that Regina’s executive committee and city council endorse e-scooters again in 2024 and make the transition to an annual program.

E-scooters were available to the general public in Regina in 2023 through a pilot project.

A second recommendation from administration proposes that city council also prepare the necessary amendments to the city’s current traffic bylaw to allow for e-scooters to become an annual mode of transportation in Regina.

Administration is proposing council approve the recommendations at its March 20 meeting.

The recommendations will be voted on by executive committee at its meeting on Wednesday and if approved will then move on to city council for review.

In 2023, 23,498 different riders travelled a total of 221,139 kilometres on e-scooters, according to the city.

There was 74,366 total rides, the city added. 

The city said the top riding destinations were downtown, Wascana Centre, REAL District, Harbour Landing and Greens on Gardener.

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The average trip for users in 2023 according to Neuron, one of the vendors available in the city, was 2.9 kilometres and took about 17 minutes to complete.

According to a survey conducted by Neuron, 54 per cent of e-scooter trips replaced a vehicle journey, which Neuron estimated eliminated about 14 tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere.

On average an e-scooter emits 96 per cent less greenhouse gasses than a traditional car per kilometre of travel, the city said.

In 2023, there were two providers of e-scooters in Regina. The city says the fee for vendors in 2024 will be $25,000 each with a $10,000 deposit.

That fee is then used to offset program costs the city would incur.

“We are thrilled that Regina’s residents and visitors have embraced our shared e-scooter program in its first season,” Mayor Sandra Masters said in a 2023 news release. “These e-scooters have not only opened up new opportunities for folks to commute and explore our city in a sustainable way, but have also made a significant contribution to our local economy.”

Regina’s first e-scooter season concluded on Oct. 25, 2023 after launching on June 28.

During the first year of the program the city required that users were at least 16-years-old, wore a helmet and stayed off roads with speed limits above 50 kilometres per hour (km/h) unless there was a designated bike lane.

Riding on sidewalks, a reduced speed limit of 15 km/h on shared pathways and no sidewalk parking were also rules the city enforced in 2023.

The city also said that based on data provided by the Saskatchewan Health Authority, between April 1 and Aug. 31 there were 34 emergency department visits related to falls involving e-scooters. 

That represented less than one per cent of all emergency room visits in Regina during the same period, the city said.

According to city, the most common injury was to the upper extremity, followed by head injuries, lower extremities, the neck, trunk and pelvis.

Of those who went to a hospital following a fall, 79 per cent were never seen by a doctor or were discharged without support, the city said.

In its meeting on Wednesday, executive committee voted unanimously in approving the recommendations.

The final decision over the future of e-scooters in Regina will be made by city council at its meeting on March 20, 2024.

--With files from David Prisciak.