Scooters could return to Pittsburgh under proposed bill
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Scooters could come back to Pittsburgh streets if a state bill gets passed, but it's getting mixed reactions.
Pennsylvania Rep. Emily Kinkead wants e-scooters back on the streets of the North Side, knowing the impact they had on the community.
"The reality is that the e-scooter program is the only micro-mobility option that ever came north of East North Avenue," Kinkead said. "In the North Side, when they were using e-scooters, a lot of times you saw people with grocery bags, you know they were going to the grocery store and picking stuff up."
It's why she along with other lawmakers are proposing a new law to restore the program, not just to the city of Pittsburgh, but any municipality in the state.
"It's not like if we pass this legislation that people can just ride e-scooters anywhere they want, anytime they want," Kinkead said.
She said if passed, it would be up to municipalities to join the program, which includes improvements based on lessons learned from the pilot that ended last summer.
"There's much more restrictions and plans for how you're going to be parking these, where people can put them," Kinkead said.
Those were major concerns for people like Alisa Grishman, founder of Access Mob Pittsburgh, who already faces several barriers, like sidewalk cracks, getting around in a wheelchair.
"To suddenly have these scooters being left willy nilly was beyond frustrating," Grishman said.
She even had a scooter run into her.
"Absolutely, could have hurt me. It could have damaged my chair," Grishman said.
Under the bill, it would also be easier to report violations and issue stronger penalties against both riders and operators for not following rules. Grishman doesn't feel that's enough.
"No matter how many restrictions you put in place, there needs to be enforcement of it, and there's no clear, no role for enforcement," Grishman said.
The next step is for the bill to go to the state House Transportation Committee. Kinkead said she's confident the bill would be able to pass the House.
