Other/Miscellaneous Request Template (Appointments; ROW; Code Changes; Zoning Action, etc.)
Date Submitted: 7-29-19
Requesting Agency: Public Works
Division:
Subject Matter Expert Name: Jason Gallardo
Email Address: jason.gallardo@denvergov.org
Item Title & Description:
(Do not delete the following instructions)
These appear on the Council meeting agenda. Initially, the requesting agency will enter a 2-3 sentence description. Upon bill filling, the City Attorney’s Office should enter the title above the description (the title should be in bold font).
Both the title and description must be entered between the red “title” and “body” below. Do not at any time delete the red “title” or “body” markers from this template.
title
A bill for an ordinance concerning the operation of electric scooters in the city and county of Denver.
Amends various sections of Chapter 54 of the Denver Revised Municipal Code (DRMC) concerning the operation of electric scooters in the City. The Committee approved filing this item at its meeting on 8-6-19.
body
Affected Council District(s) or citywide? Citywide
Executive Summary with Rationale and Impact:
Detailed description of the item and why we are doing it. This can be a separate attachment.
Denver Public Works (DPW) is currently operating a Dockless Mobility Vehicle Pilot Permit Program, which permits the commercial operation of dockless scooters and bicycles on city right-of-way. The pilot began in August 2018, and was a response to the unauthorized deployment of these vehicles in May 2018. At that time, city ordinance and Colorado state code defined dockless scooters as “toy vehicles,” which relegated their use to sidewalks. Based on near-universal feedback that the vehicles were more appropriately operated in bike lanes or the road, City Council passed an ordinance in January defining the scooters as “Electric Mobility Scooters” and requiring them to be ridden in bike lanes or the road on roads with speed limits of 30 mph or less. On roads with speed limits greater than 30 mph without a bike lane, the ordinance allowed the vehicles to be ridden on sidewalks, but at a speed no greater than 6mph.
In May 2019, the Colorado Legislature passed HB19-1221, which dealt with scooters from a state law perspective. The bill generally mirrored the language in the city’s ordinance, but contained a few differences (for example, defining the vehicles as “electric scooters”).
Concurrent with the above legislative actions, DPW has been collecting public input on the operation of the one-year pilot. People riding recklessly on the sidewalk has been the most common complaint.
This proposed ordinance reconciles city ordinance language with new state law, and also adjusts the rules on where the vehicles can be ridden to mirror bicycle/e-bicycle rules. Specifically, scooters will not be permitted to be ridden on sidewalk except in very limited circumstances (e.g. when parking or disembarking).
Address/Location (if applicable):
Legal Description (if applicable):
Denver Revised Municipal Code (D.R.M.C.) Citation (if applicable):
Draft Bill Attached?