Naughty Scooter Parking: Do Perceptions Match Reality?

Abstract

Shared scooter programs often generate complaints about improper parking as a hazard to pedestrians and as unappealing clutter on sidewalks. But what are actual rates of misparking, and do public perceptions match reality? We surveyed the general public in Auckland, New Zealand and Washington DC, USA, and polled transportation professionals at four conferences to better understand perceptions of scooter misparking. We asked respondents to estimate rates of improper parking for scooters, bicycles, and cars, and their perceptions of clutter and compliance for various parking scenarios, and understanding of reasons why riders mispark. Both the general public and transportation professionals overestimate rates of misparking for scooters and perceive far lower rates of misparking for bicycles and cars. The general public’s responses to scooter parking scenarios suggests a conflation of tidiness and order with compliance, and the most commonly perceived reason for misparking was rider carelessness. The results suggest that intuitive parking solutions that align with rider and non-rider understandings of orderly parking, such as bike racks or on-street parking corrals, may improve rider compliance and reduce public dissatisfaction with shared scooter parking.