City to draft scooter regulations, seek public comment.

Byline: Edward Russo The Register-Guard

The Eugene City Council on Monday decided that it wants to hear from the public about noise and safety concerns raised by the use of motor-assisted scooters on the city's bike paths.

Councilors unanimously directed the city staff to develop a list of possible regulations that could deal mainly with excess speed and noise on the city's bike paths and bike lanes.

The council took up the issue in a work session prompted by complaints from residents about gas- and electric-powered scooters on the city's bike paths and bike lanes.

The scooters look like skateboards with handlebars, have small rear-mounted engines, and, in some cases, seats.

Some teenagers and young adults prefer the gas-powered models, which allow them to go faster than the 15 mph speed limit on city paths. Some riders remove their scooters' mufflers, which makes them particularly noisy.

Diane Bishop, the city's bicycle and pedestrian coordinator, told councilors that some bicyclists, runners and walkers object to sharing the paths with scooters, especially the gas-powered variety, because of their speed and noise.

Scooters "are the new kids on the block," she said. "They are still kind of finding their way in the world."

Councilor Betty Taylor, who called for the work session, said scooters are a safety hazard on bike paths and in on-street bike lanes. "I'm appalled that they don't have to have a driver's license, because they are motorized vehicles," she said.

Taylor attempted a motion that would direct the staff to write an ordinance banning scooters from the bike paths and bike lanes, but it failed for lack of support.

Instead, councilors decided that they want to have an in-depth discussion about possible regulations, which would involve citizen input. If an ordinance is proposed, that would require a public hearing, for example.

"Let's get the public process started, and see what people have to say," said Councilor George Poling.

Some councilors said the city should be careful not to ban particular types of vehicles from paths or bike lanes when bicyclists can speed and be as careless as scooter users.

"I don't want us to (develop regulations) based on the characteristics of the contraption," said Councilor Nancy Nathanson.

Eugene police Sgt. Derel Schulz said many people are unfamiliar with the laws governing motor-assisted scooters, including that only people 16 years and older can ride them and they must wear a helmet. Many residents don't know that it's illegal to ride them on paths in city parks, but legal to ride them on paths outside of parks, he said.

Part of the problem is that some retailers don't inform scooter buyers of the rules, Schulz said. "I don't believe this is a fad," he said of scooters. "If anything, we are going to see more of these."