Equipping Active Travel Advocates with Digital Mobility Data and Tools: An Evaluation of a US Trial Program

Abstract

Shared micromobility services that offer bikes and scooters on demand are complementing walking, cycling, and public transport to expand the role of active mobility in urban transportation. However, on-demand services are often introduced at a faster pace than streets are redesigned to protect the safety of users. The lack of safe street infrastructure limits the potentiail mode shift to micromobility and the associated benefits. Active travel advocacy groups can make a critical difference, but they generally lack access to data resources.In 2020, Spin, a shared micromobility company, launched an initative called Mobility Data for Safer Streets (MDSS). This involved equipping six advocacy organizations in five US cities with a suite of mobility data tools to support their efforts to make streets safer. This research sought to understand how access to mobility data can help active travel advocates be more effective and was assessed via interviews with awardees throughout the 15-month program. Access to data improved advocates' effectiveness in working with the local government, garnering community support, supporting underserved communities, and advocating safe streets for all road users in their work. The MDSS model can be replicated to empower advocates or other stakeholders to advance collective understanding of active travel and influence supportive planning and policy.