Missing Micromobility

San Diego's shared scooters and bikes are gone

I’ve just arrived in San Diego to attend a conference and for some vacation time, and I was surprised to see a complete lack of micromobility options.

What is micromobility? It includes things like e-scooters and bicycles—ways to get around that are not driving. Riding a bike or a scooter is a great way to experience a city you’re visiting; it’s lovely to take in the sights, sounds, and smells in a way that’s not possible sitting in a car. Walking is also great, but you can only get so far on foot.

The key to micromobility is available of short-term, on-demand rental, especially if you’re a visitor. At home, you can certainly purchase and ride your own scooter or bicycle, but few of us bring these along when we travel. Even at home, short-term rentals allow you to choose a mode for just one leg of your trip rather than being tied to that mode for your entire journey.

In my home town of Toronto, the bike share system has been growing rapidly, both in terms of popularity and quantity of stations and bikes throughout the city. This summer, stations have even appeared on the islands, a popular warm weather distination. Both acoustic and electric bikes are available, with the stock of e-bikes also growing rapidly. And while our bike lane network still needs improvement, and is under attack by the provincial government, bike share is a fantastic way to get around in at least three of the four seasons.

When I visited Boston earlier this year, I was happy to see a pretty extensive bike share network there as well. After work each day, I rented a bike and rode through many parts of the city. Riding down to the waterfront was expecially lovely. And bike share allowed me to Uber home if it got too late, dark, cold, or perhaps I had one or two more beers than planned.

And so we come back to San Diego. With all the amazing neighbourhoods, beautiful waterfront, and other fantastic sights, I was looking forward to biking around. However, it seems that due to tight regulations and financial issues with the previous bike share system, it no longer exists. No scooters here either. There are a reasonable number of bike lanes, although not a contiguous network. So while I could rent a bike from a bike shop, that removes all the benefits and flexibility of bike share. Looks like I’ll be on foot, taking transit, or taking Ubers to get around. A missed opportunity to increase tourists’ sense of connection to this otherwise lovely city.