Shared e-scooter usage in Launceston, Tasmania

Shared dockless e-scooter schemes could have a unique role to play in Australian regional centres, according to Australian first research into usage patterns.

Monash University Professor Geoff Rose will share results from pioneering research in the regional city of Launceston in Tasmania, showing share scooter services in regional areas have their own usage patterns because of relative absence of public transport.

While research has found many similarities in customer use in major cities and regional centres, there are some significant differences, including greater late-night use in regional areas when public transport has stopped for the night.

Emerging research around the world is starting to reveal usage patterns for shared scooters. It will help identify the roles can play in urban mobility and assist with regulatory challenges as e-scooter services are being rapidly established in many cities.

However, none of those few published quantitative studies had analysed e-scooter share programs operating in Australian – let alone a small regional city.

The Launceston research drew on anonymous shared e-scooter trip data provided by the city’s share scooter operator, observing general trip characteristics, temporal trends, and spatial distribution. That data was compared to the same metrics observed internationally.

Reasons for similarities and differences are contextualised within the Launceston setting, with inferences drawn for regional Australian cities more broadly.