Capital commute: getting around Wellington on e-scooters, bikes, mopeds and feet

Friday, 21 June 2019

Stuff reporter Felix Desmarais tried out the new trial electric scooters in Wellington on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the e-scooter phenomenon finally arrived in the capital. So what does that mean for the way Wellingtonians get around their little city-village?

Before doing this story, a colleague asked me how I felt about e-scooters. I shrugged. I hadn't really thought about it.

'I don't not like them,' I said.

A morning of riding a Flamingo along the waterfront on a beautiful Wellington day changed that.

Stuff reporter Felix Desmarais with a Flamingo - one of the two brands selected to try the service in the capital.

A Flamingo is an e-scooter, by the way. The animal would no doubt make for a far less comfortable ride, and a well-warranted call from the SPCA.

Wellington reporter Felix Desmarais says Onzo and e-scooters are unlikely to clash as they can be used for different reasons.

Uber head of operations for Australia and New Zealand Henry Greenacre spoke with Stuff about Jump e-scooters in Wellington.

* Why I long for the days when footpaths were safe and Lime scooter-free

* Come on Wellington, it's time we had a twist of Lime

* The benefits of riding an e-scooter outweigh the criticism, says owner

* Jane Bowron: Use those legs and kick the Limes to the kerb**

Uber-owned Jump had a jump on the competition as many people already had the Uber app on their phones.

E-scooters have proven themselves controversial both overseas and in New Zealand.

Lime, in particular, has captured local headlines as the unwise, unfortunate, or a combination of those, fell afoul of the scooters – sometimes quite literally.

An early-adopter takes flight with a Flamingo scooter on Tuesday.

Wellington looks keen to avoid that scenario while still embracing the futuristic mode of transport.

But we already have lots of different ways to get around our compact city.

Uber head of operations for Australia and New Zealand Henry Greenacre on a Jump scooter last week. Uber-owned Jump is one of the two companies taking part in the e-scooter trial in Wellington.

I like to walk to work – it's great for mental health and well-being and allows me to think about the day ahead while grabbing a bit of exercise.

I also have a bicycle, but I live on the side of one of Wellington's many hills, so while riding down to work is a breeze (sometimes, more of a southerly gale), the last kilometre home, up that hill, gets me wheezing like Muttley at an asthma clinic.

Flamingo is co-owned by young Wellington entrepreneurs, Jacksen Love and Nick Hyland.

In October, Wellington got Onzo bikes. These are really valuable for the city, and still seem to be well-used, which is saying something considering the ratio of one helmet to every 20 bikes, plus a stagnant, rustic app and a number of broken machines.

At 25 cents per 15 minutes, it's still a cheap way to get around the city, and its drawbacks are entirely salvageable.

Felix Desmarais says he enjoys walking to work for the health benefits. (File photo).

But will anyone ride Onzo now e-scooters are here?

I think yes. Onzos are a dollar an hour, while both e-scooter companies charge 19 times that much.

I'm grateful that I live very close to a bus stop. However, it is by far the most expensive mode of transport I have available to me – short of catching a taxi to town.

If that were the only way I commuted, it would cost me $30 a week. I don't know about you, but that's a bit too much for this rookie reporter.

While my particular bus route is quite reliable, it does only come once an hour. So if I miss my service, or if it's early, I'm going to be late for work. And you don't want to see the face I get from a news director when that happens.

I also have a moped scooter. I'm not sure of the actual fuel consumption, but I have worked out it's far cheaper than the bus, comfortably under 50c to get to work.

It's also pretty quick, provided I hit a sweet spot for traffic.

But it can also be bitterly cold on the scooter in winter, and a Wellington wind gust to the side of your ride is not a fun thing to experience.

None of that is as annoying as the dearth of scooter parking in the CBD. It's fine if you're there early, but if not, you could find yourself circling the Golden Mile for ten minutes while a coffee date awaits your unfashionable lateness.

So how will e-scooters fit into all of this?

To me, e-scooters are essentially two things: a convenience and a novelty. Not a regular way to get around.

E-scooters are, above all else, really fun.

I doubt people will stick to the speed limits. The temptation to gun it is just too much.

And it's difficult – the speedometer is so low in relation to your body that it's risky to look down to check it.

This might cause some issues with pedestrians, though most I saw as I was whizzing by were grinning with the same delight I had. So maybe it's not so bad.

E-scooters are a way of getting from, as an example, Frank Kitts Park to Freyberg Pool.

Going top speed (naughty) visual journalist Rob Kitchin and I did it in five minutes. Great if you need to be somewhere fast.

It really remains to be seen whether e-scooters will work well in Wellington, but I doubt they're going to go anywhere. Now that they're here, they'll be very hard to get rid of.

It strikes me as like any other form of transportation – don't be a jerk, and we can all have a good time and get to where we're going.