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What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

haveago.city

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Re: What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

#191

Post by terenig »

s17n wrote: post #79
terenig wrote: post #63

Hi all! My name is Terenig, I'm the author of this post and founder of Have A Go. My friend messaged me giving me the heads up that this article was on Hacker News. I was really surprised! I'll do my best to reply to some of the thoughtful comments.

The problem isn't parking, it's where are these things going to drive? Bikes work OK on the street but scooters really don't (even where there are protected lanes, they really need a smoother road surface) so they end up riding on the sidewalk, hence the backlash from pedestrians. The solution is obvious (make dedicated lanes, pave them like a sidewalk) but it would mean taking a lot of space away from cars, not as p…

You make a great point. We have been advocating 3rd speed or protected bike lanes for that reason.

As for the pain that might cause drivers: bike/scooter lanes are a much higher bandwidth form of urban transportation. So more people on scooters/bikes means less people in cars. This actually means traffic reduction, even with fewer car lanes. Now add to that the increased access/usage of public transit (a much higher bandwidth form of urban mobility) because of easy access to bus/subway stations thanks to dockless bikes/scooters, and now we're talking about significant traffic reduction. Not to mention cleaner air, reduced emissions, etc. So drivers should actually be in favor of more bike infrastructure. Counterintuitive, but that's how this particular complex system functions!

Re: What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

#192

Post by terenig »

matttproud wrote: post #130

This article's author has a chip on the shoulders regarding automobiles: > pick up their cars and drop them off _anywhere_ in the city (emphasis mine) Really? One may not park a car _anywhere_. There are typically laws dictating when, where, and for how long. Whether the laws are respected or enforced are a different matter. Individuals inconsiderately stranding means of transportation across the city is patently uns…

The chip is real! But justified.

Cars have a looot of negative side effects and externalities. Global warming, 30,000 deaths each year in the US alone, expensive infrastructure/mobility, incredibly energy inefficiency, geopolitical instability due to oil and mining, etc, etc.

> even the most urban cities of the United States as hopelessly car-bound.

To be perfectly honest, that's what I thought too,= until this mass adoption of bikes/scooters that came out of nowhere. It's a super interesting development that just might make cities less car dependent.

> _anywhere_

Clarified in the article. The argument was about the user experience of cars: "Automobile parking is all around. From street parking, to business parking lots, to single family homes with driveways and garages, to large parking structures. Thus, the user experience for drivers is essentially go anywhere, park anywhere."

Supported by the observation of what happens when we sometimes can't find parking: frustration. Meaning, we expect to be able to park wherever we go in a city.

Re: What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

#193

Post by terenig »

YeGoblynQueenne wrote: post #145

>> These new lightweight EVs keep most of the benefits of cars, cut travel times, are easy and convenient, help flatten hills, increase range, and marginalize fatigue and sweating, without the terrible drawbacks of cars: their enormous weight, size, danger, inefficiency, huge parking costs, pollution, expensive infrastructure, degradation of neighborhoods, etc. Everybody is trying to sell you something. The worst are…

Walking BEST. Biking, second best. If too far, too hot, too steep, e-bikes third best.

Plus good public transportation.

Re: What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

#194

Post by staticautomatic »

terenig wrote: post #182
BrainInAJar wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes the all powerful bike lobby

Ya, Have A Go is now totally drowning in all the bike lobby cash. Please don't tell anyone! In all seriousness, Have A Go is not affiliated with any bike sharing/renting companies. If you visit our site, you'll see that we are actually based on the ownership model. Our mission is to help transition us to green, healthy, fun, affordable, and efficient modes of personal mobility, and that's why we wrote this piece! Not…

Thank you for clarifying that. I find your position on the subject indistinguishable from what I'd expect of PR spin, but I'll take your word that your motivation isn't financial.

Re: What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

#195

Post by terenig »

staticautomatic wrote: post #194
terenig wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ya, Have A Go is now totally drowning in all the bike lobby cash. Please don't tell anyone! In all seriousness, Have A Go is not affiliated with any bike sharing/renting companies. If you visit our site, you'll see that we are actually based on the ownership model. Our mission is to help transition us to green, healthy, fun, affordable, and efficient modes of personal mobility, and that's why we wrote this piece! Not…

Thank you for clarifying that. I find your position on the subject indistinguishable from what I'd expect of PR spin, but I'll take your word that your motivation isn't financial.

No problem :) Here's the mission statement that I wrote out a year ago, hopefully clarifying my motivations: http://haveago.city/our-vision/

But to be 100% honest, if I was offered payment, I would consider it. Reason being: I truly believe in lightweight electric mobility and have dedicated full-time hours to help expand their use. In exploring ways of making this financially sustainable, if it's consult fees, so be it! If that happens, I'll disclose.

As for sounding PR-y, I hope you'll judge the post again on its merits. I've been very influenced by the wealth of urban planning literature indicating how walking/biking make for great, rich, and pleasant cities and how cars make for dangerous streets and negatively affect communities. I also live in LA and find it very frustrating that we have so much poverty/homeless here and that access to affordable mobility like bikes without risking ones life isn't an option since cars are so dominant.

So I'm genuinely excited and hopeful for any prospect of shifting our mobility away from them.

Re: What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

#196

Post by swrobel »

randyrand wrote: post #181
swrobel wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really you just leave yours anywhere even though you own it?

it's heavy enough that most people dont steal it. i leave my motorcycle sitting out too. Sometimes I lock it up though.

"most people." lol.

Re: What Dockless Bikes and Scooters Are Exposing

#198

Post by erdojo »

gkoberger wrote: post #5
hapless wrote: post #2

If Hertz or Avis attempted to use public space to park their inventory, local residents and city officials would pitch a fit. Public parking exists for the benefit of the public at large, not as a cost-saving measure for rental firms. The same is true of bicycles. You can store your private bicycle almost anywhere you like in public. But city fathers will naturally take a dim view of a business using that public spac…

You mean... like Getaround and Zipcar already do? The streets are filled with companies using public spaces: Fedex deliveries blocking the road, sidewalk signs for bars, Getaround rentals, food carts, mailboxes, ATMs, parking meters, Scoot scooters, taxi lines, Lyft/Ubers, Redbox DVD rentals, annoying Greenpeace petition people, construction, billboards, etc. I don't think it's a cost-saving measure for scooter/bike…

Yet another clueless astroturfer who alters the facts to fit your own narrative. Go back to your PR boss and tell them we're not buying your "messaging".
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