Shared Micromobility Benefits Rural and Small Communities
Shared micromobility isn’t just for big cities; it also benefits rural and small communities. It’s scalable and customizable to fit any community’s needs. Today’s options include bikes, e-bikes, and e-scooters, with flexible access points, stations, and charging. Shared micromobility fits seamlessly into communities of any size, enhancing them with more choices and efficiency without needing significant land use.
Shared micromobility has significantly grown over the last fifteen years. In 2023, the number of trips and cities with shared micromobility systems reached their highest levels yet.
In 2023, at least 421 cities in North America had a shared micromobility system and communities with less than 200k people represented 186 bikeshare and 181 scooter share programs. Additionally, the number of shared micromobility systems in small cities has grown year over year since 2019.
Communities thrive with shared micromobility.
Rural and small communities benefit from shared micromobility’s flexibility and ability to be tailored to meet the needs of the community. Shared micromobility not only creates a new way to travel, it enhances existing methods. It improves car commuting by allowing parking once and moving without extra driving. Shared micromobility also offers a faster transportation mode than walking, making it an ideal choice when someone wants to use an active form of transportation but has limited time. Where public transit is present, it makes services easier by connecting people to stops and destinations.
In Arkansas, the City of Fort Smith, University of Arkansas, and the National Science Foundation in partnership with Tandem Mobility created Ride 4 SMILIES. With 40 bicycles at eight stations, it serves areas with limited transportation options. “With 55% of trips taken by individuals from low-income communities and 15% of users lacking access to private vehicles, the program has successfully filled transportation gaps for commuting, shopping, and social trips,” said Assistant Professor, Dr. Suman Kumar Mitra, from the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Arkansas. This project and partnership aim to produce insights to guide other small cities in implementing a bikeshare program. Here is a link to the user survey dashboard for the project.
Shared micromobility in rural and small communities gives people more transportation options. It helps people get to work, run errands, and enjoy local amenities. Riders can also use it to explore natural areas and connect with the community. Shared micromobility makes it easier for everyone to travel around and reach places they need to go.
The Crawford Area Transportation Authority (CATA) established a nonprofit, Northwest Pennsylvania Mobility Alliance, Inc, to introduce bikeshare in Meadville, Pennsylvania. Now in its fifth year, the program offers 30 bikes that connect users to natural trails, the local college, downtown Meadville, and neighboring communities. The program is designed with Meadville as the central hub and stations in neighboring communities as satellite locations. The unique system design allows each community involved to brand the bikes specific to their location, while riders can use a single app to check out a bike in any of the associated communities. CATA has growth on the horizon as they plan to continue to add more communities to the network aiming for 200 bikes in five rural communities in Crawford and Venango Counties.
Shared micromobility contributes to economic vitality in rural communities and small towns. It helps people spend more in the community and makes the local economy stronger. When people use these services, they visit local shops and businesses more often. This means more money stays in the area, helping local businesses grow and creating more jobs. A study published in 2023 found that e-scooter programs increased restaurant spending by approximately 5.2%, representing an additional $97.1 million USD annually in restaurant spending across the 421 cities operating shared micromobility in North America.
Operated by the nonprofit ROAM, Heartland Bike Share has over 80 bikeshare stations in the Omaha Metro region, including six in rural Sarpy County, Nebraska and one in rural Iowa. The Sarpy County stations are located southwest of the metro area and they consistently rank among the top 20 most utilized stations in the system while providing riders an opportunity to connect to amenities. ROAM also runs a station in rural Valentine, Nebraska, which they have dubbed “The World’s Most Rural Bikeshare Station.” This station connects downtown Valentine to a pedestrian bridge that is only accessible by foot or bike. The station just opened last week for its sixth season with the addition of e-bikes.
In rural areas, residents are at risk of experiencing social isolation. Shared micromobility can reduce this by helping people connect with their community and access essential services. Shared micromobility promotes community building by offering shared spaces where people can connect and engage in social activities. In addition, riding contributes to health and well-being by encouraging activity and reducing stress.
In north central Kansas, KANcycle provides bikeshare for rural Kansas. It currently serves ten communities. The goal is to create a statewide rural network. Integrated into the Transit app, KANcycle encourages people to use bikes instead of cars for short trips. This service is part of the Occupational Center of Central Kansas’ transportation programs. Last month Walk Kansas and KANYcycle partnered to offer free rides for an eight week period to encourage participants to incorporate cycling into their fitness routine to promote active lifestyles.
Shared micromobility has positive impacts on communities of any size.
As we have seen with these examples and others, shared micromobility is not just a fit for urban areas, but also in rural and small communities alike. Shared micromobility is flexible and scalable, making it a great choice for communities of any size. Shared micromobility creates new ways to travel, enhances existing methods, contributes to a positive economic impact, and connects people to amenities and each other. We are excited to see shared micromobility continue to grow in rural and small communities and demonstrate cutting-edge transportation technology that enhances travel efficiency and effectiveness, helping communities thrive.