E-scooter trial concludes in Springfield
05 November 2024
Ipswich City Council’s shared e-scooter trial will conclude this month, with all shared e-scooters set to be removed on Friday 22 November.
Infrastructure, Planning and Assets Committee Chairperson Councillor Andrew Antoniolli said trial operator Beam Mobility had notified council that the company would be concluding operations in Ipswich after a positive 15-month pilot.
“Council partnered with Beam Mobility in July 2023 for a trial to gather information on how e-scooters might form part of Ipswich’s broader transport network, with the trial extended late last year,” Cr Antoniolli said.
“Between July 2023 and June 2024, more than 27,000 trips were taken on shared e-scooters across Springfield Central, Spring Mountain, and Springfield Lakes, averaging about 75 trips per day.
“The trial will now conclude after Beam Mobility notified council of its intentions to withdraw from Ipswich this month.
“Council will now analyse the data around e-scooter use, popularity, trip length, and the community sentiment toward adopting shared e-scooters fully in the future.
“We encourage everyone who has used shared e-scooters during the trial to visit council’s Shape Your Ipswich page and complete the open survey – this data will help us determine the role of shared e-scooters within council’s transport network in the future.
“Council identified shared e-scooters as an area of investigation under council’s iGO Intelligent Transport Systems Strategy, and Springfield residents have taken up these shared e-scooters with enthusiasm, allowing council to collect important information about how we use e-scooters.
“Across the trial, there have been no serious safety incidents on Beam vehicles and fewer than one per cent of trips have triggered community complaints.
“This has been a very positive trial with plenty of support from the community, and council will keep residents informed about any future steps.”
To date, the data has shown uptake of shared e-scooters for the ‘last mile’ trips to and from public transport and major community hubs such as Springfield Central Train Station, Orion Springfield Central Shopping Centre and the University of Southern Queensland.
Further information on the trial and outcomes is available on Shape Your Ipswich.