Cities between smartness and emergencies: exploring the role of e-scooter in the “transition era”

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic hastened the use of technologies that replaced some urban activities, normally based on people interactions, thus significant changes occurred in mobility demand. Recently, also in Italy, for urban short-distance travels, “non-conventional” ways of moving spread, encouraged by governmental measures addressed to sustainable mobility, too. Defined as “urban micro-mobility” including e-scooters, these modalities of moving had a significant success, producing impacts on mobility and urban safety. This study focuses on the analysis of the spread of e-scooters use in Italy, relating both to the pandemic event and to the post-emergency phase. Specifically, this study is articulated into three parts: 1) the overview on urban micro-mobility particularly referred to the use of e-scooters in Italy; 2) the results of direct surveys (questionnaires) addressed to the undergraduate students, considered as a significant age range; 3) the effectiveness of these “alternative mobility” to improve urban sustainability.