Public Input Summary

Project Introduction

Cuyahoga County, in coordination with the City of Cleveland, Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA), Bike Cleveland, and a number of partner cities throughout the region (see below), is working to provide a shared mobility system that expands the existing network of public bicycles and scooters to reach a broader community of users across the City of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County. These partners are committed to increasing access to opportunity through enhancements to the region’s transportation network, leading to improved equity outcomes and a healthier and more prosperous Northeast Ohio region for all. Read more on shared bikes and scooters. Read more on NOACA’s commitment to racial equity.

As part of this effort, the County and partners have identified locations for bike and scooter “rebalancing hubs” (or parking locations) throughout the county. These hubs will host different types of equipment to organize scooters and e-bikes when not in use. The goal of this program is to improve accessibility and to increase public awareness of how to utilize the system. Stations are classified according to “typology” based on coral type, size, and vehicle capacity (low, medium high). The typology includes five (5) primary hub types:

• Type 1: High capacity (12+ vehicles) locations near large destinations and activity generators
• Type 2: Medium capacity (6-12 vehicles) locations near secondary destinations or activity generators
• Type 3: Low capacity (2-6 vehicles) locations near smaller neighborhood destinations
• Type 4: Low capacity (2-6 vehicles) locations where fixed racks do not fit with space constraints
• Type 3+4 Hybrid: Medium capacity (6-12 vehicles) locations with fixed racks and overflow area
• Type 5: Medium capacity (6-12 vehicles) in-street locations near primary or secondary destinations

View the full typology.

Public Input Summary

Cuyahoga County and its partners conducted a public input period from August 26th to September 30th to collect feedback from the community about the expansion of the shared micro-mobility network throughout Cuyahoga County. Feedback was sought on the station typology, as well as more than 200 draft locations that were shared in an interactive map. More than 70 comments were submitted through the map tool shared via the project website and another 21 comments were submitted via email. The feedback is summarized below.

Location Specific Feedback

Respondents submitted more than 40 comments related to specific locations on the draft location map. These comments are being reviewed with the partner cities to address any safety issues or other potential conflicts prior to finalizing locations for review by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT).

Several comments were submitted regarding adding mobility hubs in municipalities that are not currently part of this shared mobility expansion project or that are on property that is ineligible due to various circumstances (as described in the Typology and Program Guidelines).

While this current project includes expanding shared mobility and parking locations in public right-of-way in University Heights, Lakewood, Shaker Heights, South Euclid, Cleveland Heights, East Cleveland, and Cleveland; Cuyahoga County will continue to work with municipalities and other community partners interested in being part of further program expansion. Those interested in learning more can contact the Cuyahoga County Office of Sustainability at sustainability@cuyahogacounty.us.

Disorderly Parking & Sidewalk Obstruction

Several comments were received that expressed concerns about the shared mobility devices littering sidewalks and becoming obstacles for pedestrians and people with disabilities.

The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Micro-Mobility Expansion Project aims to be part of the solution to addressing these concerns through the addition of shared mobility parking hubs where devices can be parked and re-balanced. All the proposed parking locations identified in this initiative been reviewed by each individual municipality and are currently being reviewed by Greater Cleveland RTA. Locations will also be reviewed the Ohio Department of Transportation to ensure they meet their guidelines for placement of streetscape amenities and to ensure the locations will not block pedestrians in the sidewalk or inhibit the movement of people with disabilities.

In addition, the County and municipalities taking part in the shared mobility program will continue to work directly with the device operators (Spin, Lime, Bird, Link) to ensure that devices are rebalanced to the dedicated parking locations. Educational materials are also being developed to make clear to vehicle users how to properly park their devices at the end of their trip.

Residents can report devices that are blocking sidewalks or otherwise poorly parked in each device provider’s app. Each scooter and bike has a vendor logo, 24-hour customer service phone number, and device ID number. Residents can call the phone number on the bike or scooter and report the issue. Links to all the vendors website can be found at https://cuyahogacounty.us/sustainability/initiatives/bike-and-scooter-share.

Safe Riding

Several comments were received that expressed concerns about the safety of shared mobility devices.

Safety is always the number one priority when it comes to any form of transportation and mobility. All of the shared mobility providers share safe riding tips when individuals sign up to check-out a device. They also have the ability to send notifications to riders with safe riding information. Cuyahoga County and each of the partner cities will continue to work with operators and community partners to educate riders about safe riding behaviors and to educate other users of the roadway about sharing the road with all micro-mobility users.

Education

Several comments were received that shared concerns about users of the devices not being educated on how to operate the devices, as well as concerns about youth riding them.

Users of shared mobility devices are required to be 18 years of age or older. All device providers require the scanning of a state issued ID before a device can be checked out for the first time. Users found to be in violation of this policy will be prohibited from checking out a vehicle.

As the programs expands to serve a wider audience throughout the county, Cuyahoga County and the municipalities involved in the shared mobility expansion program will work with the device operators and local groups to develop educational materials, host safe riding events and disseminate information about safe biking/scooting etiquette to both program users and to other users of the transportation network.

Next Steps

Following review of detailed feedback by project partners, including participating cities and GCRTA, Cuyahoga County will update the proposed locations and submit them to ODOT for review.

Once ODOT’s review is complete, Cuyahoga County will solicit bids for procurement and installation of station equipment throughout participating municipalities in Cuyahoga County. The tentative time period for implementation is spring/summer 2023.

Program Guidelines

• This program considers locations in cities that have opted into the program and either a) currently permit the operation of shared bikes and scooters in their jurisdiction or b) are currently examining the potential to permit them. These include:
• Cleveland
• Cleveland Heights
• East Cleveland
• Lakewood
• Shaker Heights (pending)
• South Euclid
• University Heights
• The permitting authority in each city also determines where and when these vehicles may operate, but in all cases, use is limited to individuals aged 18+.  
• The locations under consideration here do not represent all parking options for the shared bikes and scooters. Due to funding restrictions, these locations must be located either in public right-of-way (not on private property) or on GCRTA property.  Other locations on private property will continue to be addressed outside of this program.
• As described in the Station Typology (above) the locations identified here must meet several criteria in the public right-of-way, including providing minimum clearance for other users of the roadway and sidewalks.

Click on the image to below to launch the interactive mapping application to get more information on each location.

Thank you for your interest as we work to provide greater mobility options in Cuyahoga County!