Paul Koretz, E-Scooters, and Vision Zero...Oh My!

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E-scooters in Santa Monica..."take em or leave em," drawn out to the extreme.
Inspired by Stockholm's own 1990s-era initiative to eliminate all traffic deaths within their city, numerous municipalities across the world have adopted "Vision Zero" programs in an attempt to curb the deadly domination of the automobile in cities of the 21st century.

However, quite infamously, these Vision Zero programs have been quite successful in almost every city in which they have been implemented...except for Los Angeles. Compared to San Francisco, New York, and Chicago, traffic deaths have been increasing as a result of Vision Zero-related interventions, not decreasing.

According to the LA Times, fatal car crashes have risen by 32% since 2015, the year that Los Angeles committed to the international program. Since then, some have called for the end of Vision Zero altogether, and others have called for even more extensive measures, feeling that the city's actions are falling short.

Amid this controversy, micromobility emerged onto the stage, with hundreds of e-scooters and bikes flooding the Westside, much to the chagrin of some and the joy of others, but with a general consensus that their arrival was unprecedented in scale and their effects most evident.

Many hail the scooters as an unseen solution to many of Los Angeles' safety as well as transportation woes, providing conveyance between bus and rail stations that are too far apart, while also providing individuals with a mode of transportation safer and speedier than walking.

Any of these arguments can be debated, but as far as Paul Koretz is concerned, these e-scooters fail on all accounts. They are dangerous, rather than safe, and many riders fail to adhere to requirements such as wearing helmets, as well as being over 18 years of age. Koretz has often discussed how the scooters clutter the sidewalks, especially in residential areas.

However, in an article from Streetsblog LA written by Joe Linton, Koretz' attitudes about scooters go beyond those of safety and spatial nuisance, but effectiveness, as well. He argues that scooters do not have a place in Vision Zero, nor are they truly capable of solving the dreaded "last mile" problem.

Strangely enough, as someone who has never used these scooters, I too wonder about their ability to solve the "last mile" problem, as well as achieve Vision Zero goals. Personally, I strongly feel that the only way to reduce the tyranny of the automobile—thus ending the last mile problem and completing Vision Zero—is to construct an extensive rail-based transit system with a vast network of stations never spaced much farther than half a mile apart from one another.

It works in the great cities of Europe and Asia, with vast metro systems such as the London Underground and the Tokyo Metro able to significantly reduce emissions, eliminate the inconvenience of the last mile, and ensure greater safety for those individuals who utilize non-automotive active transit, such as walking and biking.

LA used to have an extensive transportation system of its own, the Pacific Electric, which, in my opinion, if recreated to the exact routes that it once covered, would do more to end the last mile problem and achieve Vision Zero goals than micro-mobility could ever hope to do so. The development of LA is so heavily influenced by the PE, that the vast majority of density still remains concentrated around places where lines one ran, and in my opinion, MUST run again.

Jake Berman's "metro-style" map of Pacific Electric Lines in 1926. What's your closest station? Mine is more than a mile nearer to my residence than my closest Metro rail station is today.

Still, in the interim, I think there is some merit to such systems, but to even think for a second that they are a permanent solution, well...I'm not so sure about the merits of that.

What about you?


Links:
https://la.streetsblog.org/2019/06/12/councilmember-koretz-calls-e-scooters-anti-vision-zero-pushes-to-get-rid-of-these/
https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-traffic-deaths-bike-pedestrian-los-angeles-vision-zero-20190425-story.html
https://www.planetizen.com/news/2018/03/97778-can-electric-scooters-solve-first-mile-last-mile-problem
https://techcrunch.com/2019/04/03/the-uncertain-future-of-shared-electric-scooters/
https://www.itdp.org/2018/12/14/e-scooters-last-mile-solution/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/roomykhan/2018/12/24/electric-scooters-last-mile-mobility-thrill-rides-public-nuisance-or-hazard/#6baa9d9a3ccb


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