Maryland Provides Practical Support for Communities

Among the states working on shared micromobility, Maryland has one of the clearest visions for what it wants the work to accomplish, even though shared micromobility remains a small part of its overall transportation portfolio. The Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) houses this work in its Office of Active Transportation and Micromobility (OATM), where shared micromobility sits within a portfolio that covers all of active transportation. 

Two systems anchor the state. Capital Bikeshare, the docked regional network shared with Washington and Virginia, serves Maryland through Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, including College Park and the University of Maryland, and recorded more than 6.3 million trips in 2025. Baltimore runs a dockless program of shared e-bikes and e-scooters that passed 3 million trips in 2025, nearly double the year before and its best year yet. Salisbury and the University of Maryland also have dockless systems.

MDOT’s role centers on supporting local governments in their own shared micromobility program management. OATM works with the Motor Vehicle Administration to set micromobility vehicle safety standards, and it provides assistance to the local jurisdictions that permit shared micromobility fleets for public use. Rather than run systems itself, MDOT positions the state as a resource for the cities and counties that do.

A good deal of that support is practical. MDOT has been developing a sample permit system and contract that municipalities can use when they want to launch a shared micromobility system, covering parking, equity programs, and the community engagement requirements operators are expected to meet. The state also brings its municipalities with active systems together to share best practices and feedback, creating a steady channel for the kind of peer learning that smaller programs often lack.

On the ground, Maryland’s communities have taken different paths, which gives the state a useful range of models to draw from. Most programs operate as public-private partnerships. Baltimore issues annual permits to operators, an approach that lets the city adjust requirements over time, while Annapolis uses a single operator agreement under which one provider delivers all of the city’s service. The systems are well used, and in 2025, Capital Bikeshare, which serves Maryland, Washington, and Virginia, recorded more than 6.3 million trips, and Baltimore’s dockless vehicles passed 3 million.

Maryland backs this work with a broader set of active transportation investments. The Kim Lamphier Bikeways Grant Program directed $2 million to locally initiated bicycle projects in fiscal year 2026, and the state’s Complete Streets policy, signed in 2024 and effective in 2025, commits MDOT to integrate safety for all users throughout all phases of project development. Governor Wes Moore has announced more than $13 million for bicycle, pedestrian, and trail projects statewide this year awarded to locally initiated projects through grants. Maryland has shown a commitment to active transportation projects, but the state does not currently have a fund to support shared micromobility specifically.

Maryland Department of Transportation provides support for shared micromobility systems by facilitating a regular forum for local programs and developing resources that can be used by municipalities across the state.