Companies are jockeying for strategic
position in the so-called micromobility
revolution, where consumers are embracing
shared scooters and bikes for short trips
and exploring alternatives to car ownership
buoyed by the ubiquity of smartphones.
Riders took 84 million trips on micromobility
services such as shared scooters and bikes in
2018, more than double the number from the
year before.
Scooter and bike riders typically use an app
to find one nearby and pay a few dollars to
ride for a set period of time, paying within the
smartphone app using a credit card. Some
shared mobility services, such as Lyft-owned
Citi Bike in New York City, offer monthly or
annual memberships for riders.
There were more than 85,000 electric
scooters available for public use in the
U.S. in 2018 compared with 57,000 station-
based bikes.
Shared bikes are considered “station-based”
or “docked” if a rider takes out the bike and
returns it to one of many docking stations
— basically parking lots for bikes — which
are spread throughout a city. Dockless bikes,
which represent a smaller portion of shared
bikes, can be left anywhere, and can be found
and unlocked through a smartphone app.
Shared docked bike usage among monthly
pass holders peaks during rush hours,
suggesting use by commuters, but shared
scooter usage does not, indicating scooters
may be more likely to be used for recreational
use, according to the report.