Geofencing and city dashboards for micromobility: Identifying the needs of cities, operators and technology providers

Abstract

Micromobility and specifically e-scooters and e-bikes have been recently introduced sharply in many cities worldwide. This abrupt introduction did not allow city authorities to prepare adequate infrastructure and regulatory frameworks. The resulting undesirable effects include among others, public space seizure due to improper parking or vehicles’ distribution as well as traffic safety issues due to inappropriate riding or infrastructure use. To tackle these undesirable effects, various technological solutions are being considered. Geofencing, in most cases, attempts to prevent illegal parking or riding, while city dashboards aim to collect useful information on the operation of micromobility systems in order to make data-driven decisions. However, as it was highly expected, relevant stakeholders (i.e. local authorities, micromobility operators, technology providers) have different interests and needs concerning specific technological solutions, which should be considered. For this purpose, the Q-method was implemented as part of a European project, allowing stakeholders from three different European cities (i.e. Rome, Barcelona, Thessaloniki) to express their thoughts and needs during a joint workshop. The analysis of their responses leads to the identification of key functionalities that these technological solutions should include, as well as to the consideration of the different stakeholders’ perspectives. Based on the above, directions and recommendations can be derived to guide the development of technological solutions which will meet the exact needs of the stakeholders.