(Image: SDOT)
Seattle’s latest effort to corral its electric bike and scooter parking problem is taking shape with brightly-colored rectangles of paint across the city’s core.
The Seattle Department of Transportation says more than 200 bike and scooter “corrals” are being installed around downtown and in areas like Capitol Hill.
“Some will have vibrant art, like these by local artist Roy (Eroyn) Franklin, created in partnership with SDOT Signs & Markings, Seattle Symphony, Benaroya Hall, and the Office of Arts & Culture Seattle,” SDOT said about one of its latest installations downtown.
If you are wondering if your favorite stretch of the neighborhoodl is due for a corral, look for recent white pavement markings from SDOT. Crews have spent the past few months marking out spaces where the corrals are planned to be painted. CHS spotted one recently near the Hopvine.
SDOT says its data shows that two or more parking zones on a block can reduce “mis-parked” scooters and bikes “by 50% or more.”
Planners said criteria for corral placement includes “where mis-parked devices have been ticketed” as well as near stadiums and hotels, where tracking shows most trips end, and “near transit and bike facilities.”
Mis-parking the rides can clutter sidewalks and make it difficult for people using mobility devices to make their way through the city. The city also reminds riders to stay in the street — it is against the law to ride on the city’s sidewalks.
While the popularity of rental e-bikes and scooters has been a dream for Seattle’s transit micro-mobility planners, the fleets continue to be a logistical nightmare for the city. There is growing energy at Seattle City Hall to put the companies on the line for violations involving their equipment.
At the recent Capitol Hill/First Hill Seattle mayoral candidate forum, Mayor Bruce Harrell said said the city has issued “thousands of tickets” to the companies over improper storage and his administration is “looking for ways to get better behavior from the companies.”
In the meantime, the new painted areas are hoped to be a positive reminder of the parking rules. Keeping riders off the sidewalks will take more than paint, however.
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