Oakland City Council to take up dockless scooter law.
The Oakland City Council Public Works Committee approved a proposed Ordinance to establish regulations and new permits for dockless scooter sharing programs, co-authored by Oakland At-Large Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan, and Oakland Councilmembers Noel Gallo (District Five) , and Lynette Gibson McElhaney (District Three), on Tuesday. This item will come to the full Council on July 24, starting at 5:30 pm at Oakland City Hall.
Rebecca Kaplan says, “The proposed Ordinance will provide responsible guidelines for scooter companies as they do business in Oakland.”
Dockless scooters are being made available by being placed in public locations, and can be a benefit to the community and help with health and mobility if done correctly. However, if done incorrectly, these scooters can have negative impacts by blocking wheelchairs and pedestrians, cluttering sidewalks, and becoming blight. (If you are wondering Who is Liable In a Dockless Scooter Accident?”, click on this link for answers by The Carlson Law Firm.)
“Our proposed requirements deal with a range of problems and potential problems that have occurred – including prohibiting threatening noises, requiring liability insurance, and where they can be deployed,” says Councilmember Kaplan.
The ordinance also requires local maintenance teams, designated locations for dockless scooters and discounted membership plan for those who are low-income.
In addition, the ordinance will require dockless scooter companies distributed equitably throughout Oakland. No less than 50% of operator scooters shall be deployed in Oakland’s Communities of Concern.
“To make sure that we can have good mobility options for everyone in our community, it is important that scooter share systems be properly regulated, provide affordable rates, local jobs and reliable local maintenance teams, and benefit the public. Depending how they are handled, scooter share systems could be a benefit or have negative impacts on our community – so I am urging Oakland to adopt responsible regulations,” says Councilmember Kaplan.