A new report commissioned by transport charity Motability Foundation has found that just 10% of disabled people in the UK have used a shared micromobility service before.
But over half believe shared micromobility could potentially improve their lives.
Delivered by the Research Institute for Disabled Consumers (RiDC) and national charity for shared transport Collaborative Mobility UK (CoMoUK), the report titled ‘Raising the Bar – Boosting the Accessibility of Shared Micromobility Services’ investigates the benefits and challenges of shared micromobility for disabled users and how these services can be made more inclusive.
Included in the research is a survey of 782 respondents, focus groups, workshops and interviews with industry stakeholders.
“Shared micromobility is a relatively new transport type that is experiencing rapid growth,” Motability Foundation Innovation Manager Harry Fisher told Zag Daily. “We think this offers a unique window of opportunity to integrate the needs of disabled people from an early stage. This research shows there is potential for these services to provide a sustainable way of travelling for some disabled people, allowing them to make independent journeys that they have more control over.
“To achieve this, it is essential to focus on offering inclusive vehicle options, designing services that are both accessible and safe, and empowering disabled people by building their awareness and confidence to explore and use existing services. We want to work with all stakeholders to ensure the needs of disabled people are prioritised in the development of shared micromobility services.”
The report identified some key barriers that result in low uptake of shared micromobility amongst disabled people which include inaccessible vehicle designs, low confidence in using the services, and a lack of awareness about how to access them.
Safety concerns were also a reason for 21% of respondents who had never used a shared micromobility vehicle before.
Those that have used a shared micromobility service before exhibit greater confidence than those that haven’t, with 70% of disabled users of shared micromobility feeling confident in their use compared with 32% of non-users.
“Not being able to go where you need to has a huge impact on all aspects of life – securing paid work, connecting with friends and family and accessing vital services, such as healthcare. Shared micromobility services have the potential to change that, so it was encouraging to see that many disabled people who have previous experience with them are confident about their use,” Gordon McCullough, CEO of the RiDC said.
“The work now needs to be done to ensure that these potentially life changing transport services are accessible and available to all. Listening to disabled people from the outset and building their feedback and suggestions into the final design are crucial. When you design inclusively it benefits the whole population.”
Report recommendations
Three priority areas for improvements are outlined in the report: accessible vehicle design, accessible digital platforms to make booking apps and service platforms inclusive and user friendly, and awareness and education.
“This is an important and ground-breaking piece of research, which clearly shows that disabled people are aware of the benefits of shared transport and would like to use it more often,” CoMoUK Chief Executive Richard Dilks said. “It also shows that there is much work to be done to make the existing offering more accessible and inclusive, and the findings contain a number of key lessons for operators and government in particular.”
Building on these three themes, the report outlines nine recommendations aimed at policymakers, regulatory bodies, shared operators, disability charities and disabled people to guide the development of shared micromobility services.
To improve vehicle design, it recommends the creation of a government-sponsored design challenge focused on developing hybrid mobility vehicles that address the needs of disabled users. It also calls for a summit which unites operators, local and central government, mobility scooter providers, and disability organisations to collaborate on hybrid shared micromobility solutions.
To improve the accessibility of booking and delivery, the report calls for operators to create digital platforms that meet accessibility standards and include voice assistance, large fonts and screen readers.
The report advocates for disability organisations to partner with shared micromobility operators, regulators and central government to raise awareness about the benefits of accessible shared micromobility for disabled users. It also calls for accessibility training programs for shared micromobility operators to improve their service for disabled users.
A key finding from the report was that a lack of clear regulation governing shared micromobility limits the innovation and development of accessible services. It therefore makes a series of legislation-related recommendations.
It urges the government to revise outdated laws governing mobility scooters such as those relating to the use of “invalid carriages”. Furthermore, it incentivises targeted funding and grants for operators to design and implement accessible shared micromobility services.
The report also calls for accessibility and safety regulations for shared micromobility services such as anti-tip mechanisms, intuitive controls and real-time assistance options, and it states that e-scooter and e-bike trials should expand to include accessible vehicle options like seated scooters and tricycles.
“We know from our previous work that micromobility schemes such as e-scooters and bike sharing have the potential to be transformative, improving people’s health at the same time as cutting road congestion and air pollution and freeing up space in cities,” Richard said. “It is crucial that nobody is left behind as we embrace these sustainable forms of transport, which must be made as accessible as possible at the design stage.”
