Shared Micromobility Survey Library
Project Background
Shared micromobility options such as shared electric scooters (e-scooters) are becoming popular at an unprecedented rate. These services are changing the landscape of transportation in their own ways. These changes can both be trip specific and long-termed. Surveys have been widely used in the transportation domain to understand these unknowns as in the study of electric vehicles and bike sharing. The aim of this project is to conduct a survey of surveys to understand what questions are in place to assess the unknowns with shared micromobility, and to provide a starting point for researchers to employ new micromobility surveys.
The Power of Surveys
User surveys are an important tool to examine the impacts brought by shared micromobility, together with observational studies and trip level data analysis from big-data datasets. To date, there are a number of evaluation reports of shared micromobility systems in the United States that are often led by local government agencies. In general, these cities are largely the major population centers in the country. Geographically, the majority are located in the Pacific West, the Midwest, and the Northeast areas (Figure 1). Most of these reports rely on surveys as the main assessment tool and provide information on demographics, behaviors, preferences and perception of shared micromobility users. Table 1 summarizes a list of these reports and the types of shared micromobility services that are studied.
Project Objectives
Drawing upon the existing surveys of shared micromobility in the United States, this effort aims at providing a summary of the survey questions that are included in these studies, and a classification of these questions. In addition, this work will review and document the methods that are applied to conduct these studies. This toolkit platform is prepared for practitioners and researchers with various needs to easily navigate through the archived survey questions and locate the information they desire. A survey developer should be able to identify topics they’re interested in and find validated questions that have been used in other studies to consistently apply in their own study.
The selected ten surveys explore an array of questions related to the use of shared micromobility vehicles. These themes include but are not limited to 1) user demographics, 2) motivation and attitude, 3) travel behavior and mode choice, 4) safety, 5) accessibility, 6) program evaluation, 7) user experience. The choice of questions in the survey often reflects the motivations of an organization to introduce a shared micromobility scheme. For example, ten out of the 16 questions in the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) [4] survey concern demographics since one major goal of the shared micromobility program is to address rider diversity. While survey data was collected both in-person and online, the majority of the surveys were conducted online (or in-app) only. A variety of survey platforms were used which were often advertised through websites, emails and social media. Survey logic is commonly used to distribute the right set of questions to the corresponding users. For example, the Portland survey [2] asks slightly different questions to residents and visitors with the use of survey logic. Multiple choice (MC), select all that apply (SA), open-ended (OE), multiple choice with open-ended option(s) (MCOE), and select all that apply with open-ended option(s) (SAOE) are the five question types that constitute all the surveys.
Sample Key Survey Questions
1) User Demographic Questions
User demographic questions can reveal key attributes of the user group. Such information is important in assessing whom the shared micromobility is serving and if shared micromobility user group is more diverse. A total of 19 questions and their variants are found in this category. The most included questions are residence ZIP code, race/ethnicity, gender, age, income, and disability. The majority of the questions under this category are multiple choice questions. For demographic questions such as race, gender and age, we recommend using the same set of options from the American Community Survey (ACS) to provide identifiable and accurate responses. This also ensures consistency when comparing across multiple survey results.
For example, when it comes to the race question, we recommend to ask in the following way
Please identify your race (choose one or more)
White
Black or African American
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asians
Native Hawaiian
Pacific Islander
Others (please specify:)
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
2) Motivation and Attitude Questions
Motivation and attitude questions access a rider's reasons and barriers to adopt micromobility. Under this category, there are three main questions: impression about the shared micromobility services, adoption motivations, and adoption barriers. Often, these questions offer attitudinal likert scale responses. Of note, different from the trip specific questions that are introduced in the next category, these questions are rather general. Since there are multiple possible responses, it is recommended to use a "Select all that apply" style question.
Choose the top 3 reasons that you ride micromobility devices.
It can be the fastest way to get where I need to go
It is easy
Avoid parking
It is fun
Save money on transportation
It is environmentally friendly
It is healthy
Other (please specify: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
3) Travel Behavior and Mode Choice Questions
The mode choice question can help evaluate the impact of micromobility on other modes of transportation from which their impacts on the environment can be estimated. This question category intends to study how the use of shared micromobility affects other modes of transportation. This is a key category in the survey library as mode substitution data is fundamental when it comes to understanding the transportation, environmental, and health impacts of shared micromobility. In addition, it enables more informed multimodal transportation planning. Most questions are asked in the context of a recent shared micromobility trip, mirroring a travel dairy approach. In this category, common questions include trip purposes and types, alternative and complementary modes, use frequency of shared micromobility, use frequency changes in other modes, changes in automobile ownership. A sound question should include all the possible alternative modes of transportation to micromobility in the area. In practice, it is recommended to ask the rider about a specific micromobility trip to generate more accurate response. This approach is known as the travel diary approach with which important information such as trip distance can also be obtained.
How would you complete your trip if a shared e-scooter had not been available in your last trip? (Choose one)
Driven a personal vehicle, carshare vehicle, or other motor
Ridden as a passenger in a vehicle and dropped off by a friend, family member, or other person
Taken a taxi, Uber or Lyft
Taken a bus/other local public transportation options
Walked
Ridden a personal e-scooter
Ridden the local bike share
Ridden a personal bike
Would not have made the trip
Other (please specify: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
4) Safety Questions
Safety is a prime concern in shared micromobility which has been reflected in survey questions. Themes of safety questions cover infrastructure use and preferences, crash and near-crash experience, safety perceptions towards different road users, parking and helmet use. However, It typically mainly concerns the infrastructure and the conflicts with other road users. Since riders may not be familiar with the infrastructure terminologies, it is recommendable to attach images of such infrastructure.
Regardless of where you currently ride e-scooters, where would you prefer to ride e-scooters in this area? Please indicate your preferences for the following infrastructure from 1 to 5 with 5 as most preferred and 1 as least preferred.
Protected bike lane (image attached):
Bike lane (image attached):
Trail (image attached):
Sidewalk (image attached):
Shared lane (image attached):
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
5) Accessibility Questions
In this context, accessibility refers to both the access to the shared micromobility devices and access to other modes of transportation through shared micromobility. The use of micromobility devices to connect public transportation is a major concern in accessibility and equity issues in transportation. Understanding how riders use micromobility in connection with transit helps develop measures to improve the operation of micromobility services.
For your most recent trip, did you use the service to get to or from public transportation? (Choose one)
Yes
No
Other (please specify: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
6) Program Evaluation Questions
Program-related questions serve two main purposes. First, they are to understand users’ familiarity with the program specific rules regarding shared micromobility. The other purpose is to solicit feedback to improve the program. The question on familiarity with the program rules is the most popular question. Typically, the question states a list of rules and ask survey respondents to indicate which ones are correct or they prefer. Municipalities can also choose to include some other specific questions in the survey to identify room of improvement for the micromobility program as an evaluation measure. This question can be mostly open-ended but it is recommendable to put in some responses to inspire thoughts from the survey respondents.
What changes to the rules would encourage you to use the program more often? (Select all that apply)
Allow more e-scooters
Create dedicated spaces for e-scooter parking
Create dedicated spaces for e-scooter riding
Lower and enforce e-scooter speed
Ban e-scooters
Other (please describe: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
7) User Experience Questions
The user experience questions serve very similar purposes as program evaluation questions but from the service provider and customer service perspectives. Topics range from device availability, choice of service providers, payment, fleet maintenance, to suggestions to encourage more use. User experience questions serve as the final chance for riders to input information that the survey may otherwise fail to capture. These aspects are of equal importance when it comes to improve the micromobility program.
If you had positive experience with the pilot, what contributed to your positive experience? (Open-ended)
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
Access all the questions in a single Word document (last updates: Feb 2, 2021)
Access the whole library here (last updates: Feb 2, 2021)
User demographic questions can reveal key attributes of the user group. Such information is important in assessing whom the shared micromobility is serving and if shared micromobility user group is more diverse. A total of 19 questions and their variants are found in this category. The most included questions are residence ZIP code, race/ethnicity, gender, age, income, and disability. The majority of the questions under this category are multiple choice questions. For demographic questions such as race, gender and age, we recommend using the same set of options from the American Community Survey (ACS) to provide identifiable and accurate responses. This also ensures consistency when comparing across multiple survey results.
For example, when it comes to the race question, we recommend to ask in the following way
Please identify your race (choose one or more)
White
Black or African American
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asians
Native Hawaiian
Pacific Islander
Others (please specify:)
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
2) Motivation and Attitude Questions
Motivation and attitude questions access a rider's reasons and barriers to adopt micromobility. Under this category, there are three main questions: impression about the shared micromobility services, adoption motivations, and adoption barriers. Often, these questions offer attitudinal likert scale responses. Of note, different from the trip specific questions that are introduced in the next category, these questions are rather general. Since there are multiple possible responses, it is recommended to use a "Select all that apply" style question.
Choose the top 3 reasons that you ride micromobility devices.
It can be the fastest way to get where I need to go
It is easy
Avoid parking
It is fun
Save money on transportation
It is environmentally friendly
It is healthy
Other (please specify: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
3) Travel Behavior and Mode Choice Questions
The mode choice question can help evaluate the impact of micromobility on other modes of transportation from which their impacts on the environment can be estimated. This question category intends to study how the use of shared micromobility affects other modes of transportation. This is a key category in the survey library as mode substitution data is fundamental when it comes to understanding the transportation, environmental, and health impacts of shared micromobility. In addition, it enables more informed multimodal transportation planning. Most questions are asked in the context of a recent shared micromobility trip, mirroring a travel dairy approach. In this category, common questions include trip purposes and types, alternative and complementary modes, use frequency of shared micromobility, use frequency changes in other modes, changes in automobile ownership. A sound question should include all the possible alternative modes of transportation to micromobility in the area. In practice, it is recommended to ask the rider about a specific micromobility trip to generate more accurate response. This approach is known as the travel diary approach with which important information such as trip distance can also be obtained.
How would you complete your trip if a shared e-scooter had not been available in your last trip? (Choose one)
Driven a personal vehicle, carshare vehicle, or other motor
Ridden as a passenger in a vehicle and dropped off by a friend, family member, or other person
Taken a taxi, Uber or Lyft
Taken a bus/other local public transportation options
Walked
Ridden a personal e-scooter
Ridden the local bike share
Ridden a personal bike
Would not have made the trip
Other (please specify: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
4) Safety Questions
Safety is a prime concern in shared micromobility which has been reflected in survey questions. Themes of safety questions cover infrastructure use and preferences, crash and near-crash experience, safety perceptions towards different road users, parking and helmet use. However, It typically mainly concerns the infrastructure and the conflicts with other road users. Since riders may not be familiar with the infrastructure terminologies, it is recommendable to attach images of such infrastructure.
Regardless of where you currently ride e-scooters, where would you prefer to ride e-scooters in this area? Please indicate your preferences for the following infrastructure from 1 to 5 with 5 as most preferred and 1 as least preferred.
Protected bike lane (image attached):
Bike lane (image attached):
Trail (image attached):
Sidewalk (image attached):
Shared lane (image attached):
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
5) Accessibility Questions
In this context, accessibility refers to both the access to the shared micromobility devices and access to other modes of transportation through shared micromobility. The use of micromobility devices to connect public transportation is a major concern in accessibility and equity issues in transportation. Understanding how riders use micromobility in connection with transit helps develop measures to improve the operation of micromobility services.
For your most recent trip, did you use the service to get to or from public transportation? (Choose one)
Yes
No
Other (please specify: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
6) Program Evaluation Questions
Program-related questions serve two main purposes. First, they are to understand users’ familiarity with the program specific rules regarding shared micromobility. The other purpose is to solicit feedback to improve the program. The question on familiarity with the program rules is the most popular question. Typically, the question states a list of rules and ask survey respondents to indicate which ones are correct or they prefer. Municipalities can also choose to include some other specific questions in the survey to identify room of improvement for the micromobility program as an evaluation measure. This question can be mostly open-ended but it is recommendable to put in some responses to inspire thoughts from the survey respondents.
What changes to the rules would encourage you to use the program more often? (Select all that apply)
Allow more e-scooters
Create dedicated spaces for e-scooter parking
Create dedicated spaces for e-scooter riding
Lower and enforce e-scooter speed
Ban e-scooters
Other (please describe: )
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
7) User Experience Questions
The user experience questions serve very similar purposes as program evaluation questions but from the service provider and customer service perspectives. Topics range from device availability, choice of service providers, payment, fleet maintenance, to suggestions to encourage more use. User experience questions serve as the final chance for riders to input information that the survey may otherwise fail to capture. These aspects are of equal importance when it comes to improve the micromobility program.
If you had positive experience with the pilot, what contributed to your positive experience? (Open-ended)
Click to download all the recommended questions under this category
Access all the questions in a single Word document (last updates: Feb 2, 2021)
Access the whole library here (last updates: Feb 2, 2021)
The Emergence of In-app Surveys
A characteristic difference in shared micromobility is the use of smartphone applications (apps). Almost all shared micromobility service providers operate through these apps which offer a unique opportunity for researchers to conduct instant surveys in addition to bringing convenience to the users. For example, after every trip, a short survey concerning trip purpose, alternative mode of transportation can pop up on the screen. Alternatively, users can visit every previous trip to fill out the questions at a later time. One benefit of this novel travel diary style survey method is the trip specificity which provides better accuracy compared to the traditional pen and paper approach given that users do not have to recall back on recent trips on their own.
Key References
1. Lime. San Francisco Scooter Use Survey Results. 2018 [cited 2020 Oct 22]; Available from: https://www.li.me/hubfs/Lime%20San%20Francisco%20Scooter%20Survey%20Findings.pdf.
2. Portland Bureau of Transportation, 2018 E-scooter Pilot User Survey Results. 2018.
3. Denver Department of Public Works, Denver Dockless Mobility Program Pilot Interim Report. 2019.
4. San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, Powered Scooter Share Mid-Pilot Evaluation. 2019.
5. City of Bloomington, Scooter Survey Report. 2019.
6. Mobility Lab, Arlington County Shared Mobility Devices Pilot Evaluation Report. 2019.
7. City of Santa Monica, Shared Mobility Device Pilot Program User Survey Results. 2019.
8. City of Chicago, E-Scooter Pilot Evaluation. 2020.
9. Baltimore City Department of Transportation, Dockless Vehicle Pilot Program Evaluation Report. 2019.
10. Sanders, R. L., Branion-Calles, M., & Nelson, T. A. (2020). To scoot or not to scoot: Findings from a recent survey about the
benefits and barriers of using E-scooters for riders and non-riders. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 139,
217-227. Chicago
2. Portland Bureau of Transportation, 2018 E-scooter Pilot User Survey Results. 2018.
3. Denver Department of Public Works, Denver Dockless Mobility Program Pilot Interim Report. 2019.
4. San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, Powered Scooter Share Mid-Pilot Evaluation. 2019.
5. City of Bloomington, Scooter Survey Report. 2019.
6. Mobility Lab, Arlington County Shared Mobility Devices Pilot Evaluation Report. 2019.
7. City of Santa Monica, Shared Mobility Device Pilot Program User Survey Results. 2019.
8. City of Chicago, E-Scooter Pilot Evaluation. 2020.
9. Baltimore City Department of Transportation, Dockless Vehicle Pilot Program Evaluation Report. 2019.
10. Sanders, R. L., Branion-Calles, M., & Nelson, T. A. (2020). To scoot or not to scoot: Findings from a recent survey about the
benefits and barriers of using E-scooters for riders and non-riders. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 139,
217-227. Chicago