After an initial rush driven by novelty, demand for e-scooters has started to wane after three months of the state government e-scooter trial.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Ballarat was the only regional city selected to take part in the trial program, which started in mid-December, alongside three other Melbourne council areas.
Neuron Mobility, who operates the e-scooters, estimates 80,000 trips have been taken in Ballarat since the trial started, covering more than 200,000 kilometres.
However, the average number of rides per week had declined since the trial's lunch, with an average of between 5500 and 6500 trips completed per week after the first six weeks, down from 8000 to 9000 in the first six weeks.
HAVE YOUR SAY AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS STORY
The numbers are believed to be strong and in line with what was expected during the first few months of the trial, with variances put down to major events and weather, among other factors.
IN OTHER NEWS:
While demand is slowing, Neuron said rider behaviour was improving.
"Our safety ambassadors have reinforced the rules to hundreds of riders as part of our ongoing focus on safety, over time we are seeing behaviour significantly improve as people get more familiar with the service," the company said in a statement.
"All of our e-scooters are GPS-connected and all trips are logged so it's fairly easy to identify the small number of riders who are breaking the rules. Our e-scooters are also fitted with registration plates so members of the public can report any issues.
"Thankfully cases of repeat offending are rare - we generally warn people and try to reeducate them but we can also suspend their accounts if they have been riding dangerously or if they continually break the rules."
While behaviour has reportedly improved, Ballarat Highway Patrol acting Senior Sergeant Andy Rigg said police were still noticing some people breaking the rules.
"I think as people get educated into the use and the legalities of the scooters, we're certainly seeing some improvements," he said.
"That being said, we still quite often and frustratingly see people riding scooters without helmets, we see dual riding and I think one of the biggest ones is the underage riding that still seems to be occurring.
"While there seems to be some improvement, it's still a concern and it's something that we're paying as much attention to as we can."
While vandalism of shared vehicles, such as bikes and e-scooters, is common, Neuron said cases were very rare with its e-scooters.
"Our e-scooters are GPS-enabled and are connected so their location is always known. As a safeguard for our riders, if an e-scooter is vandalised we remotely immobilise it so that it is temporarily rendered unusable. It is then retrieved and taken back to the warehouse for evaluation and repair," the statement said.
However, Neuron did not confirm how many cases of vandalism had taken place during the trial.
Neuron's safety ambassadors attended ACU's orientation week market day, talking students through the trial and a safety briefing, as part of its 'ScootSafe' campaign in partnership with the Australian Road Safety Foundation.
If you are seeing this message you are a loyal digital subscriber to The Courier, as we made this story available only to subscribers. Thank you very much for your support and allowing us to continue telling Ballarat's story. We appreciate your support of journalism in our great city.