Scooter Permittees Receive Feedback from Students with Disabilities

Scooter Permittees Receive Feedback from Students with Disabilities
By Maddy Ruvolo

On a recent Monday in Golden Gate Park, 28 students and staff from AccessSFUSD gathered on JFK Drive to test-ride adaptive scooters. The group took turns riding adaptive devices from two scooter companies permitted to operate in the city, Lime and Spin. Adaptive devices are designed to meet the needs of riders with a variety of disabilities and provide additional stability features, such as a seat, a wider base, and an additional wheel. After trying the scooters, the students shared their feedback about a variety of design elements, including the wheels, seat, throttle, basket location, foot plate width, and the ease of getting started.

A group of AccessSFUSD students and staff rides adaptive scooters on JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park Adaptive scooter demo in Golden Gate Park

Students embraced the opportunity to ride scooters and provide feedback. AccessSFUSD is a community-based program for students 18-22 with disabilities. Located across 11 sites in San Francisco, the program focuses on teaching functional life skills within the community setting. Developing advocacy skills is a key component of the program, and students enthusiastically shared their input with the scooter companies. Heidi Seretan, Special Education Department Head at AccessSFUSD: The Arc said, “It was a glorious day to ride and advocate on car-free JFK in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco’s own backyard.”

One student shared they had an “amazing first time” riding a scooter and described it as “the best.” Students also gave thoughtful constructive criticism, explaining when a particular seat height or device design didn’t work for them. And one student said that they “need more practice... but I'm getting the hang of it.”

AccessSFUSD students standing with Lime and Spin scooters; one student is giving a thumbs up Thumbs up to adaptive devices

Staff from Spin and Lime were on-hand to help students get rolling and to answer any questions. Both scooter permittees expressed their appreciation for the comments from AccessSFUSD students. Lime shared that they “enjoyed hearing directly” from the students and that their “hardware team has already begun reviewing students’ feedback to find ways to continue to refine our vehicles.” Spin echoed the importance of the students’ input, noting that “the direct feedback we gather from local San Francisco students and residents on our adaptive program is critical to continuously improving and more equitably serving the entire community.”

AccessSFUSD students on Lime and Spin scooters in Golden Gate Park AccessSFUSD students enjoying scooters

This is the second time the SFMTA has partnered with AccessSFUSD and scooter permittees to host an adaptive scooter demonstration, with the first event held in fall 2021. Any organization interested in partnering on a similar adaptive scooter event should get in touch with Maddy Ruvolo with our Accessible Services team by emailing Maddy.Ruvolo@sfmta.com.

A group of AccessSFUSD students wearing helmets Students ready to ride

The SFMTA has prioritized adaptive scooters as part of our Powered Scooter Share Permit Program. The three scooter permittees — Bird, Spin and Lime — are required to provide adaptive scooters as a minimum of 5% of their on-street fleet. The permittees also offer different types of adaptive devices through their Complementary Adaptive Programs, which provide longer-term adaptive rentals free of charge through scheduled drop-off and pick-up. We encourage all who are interested to try an adaptive scooter, and stay tuned for more scooter demonstration events coming later this year!

Published February 15, 2023 at 10:54PM
https://ift.tt/bDa5LUC

Comments

Powered Scooters Charge City’s Transportation Recovery

Powered Scooters Charge City’s Transportation Recovery By Jason Hyde The SFMTA is releasing its next round of Powered Scooter Share permits on July 1. Scooters remain a sustainable mode of travel and a complement to Muni and public transit service as the city recovers from the pandemic and San Franciscans begin to travel more. The SFMTA’s Powered Scooter Share Program is essential in ensuring that shared scooter operations support the city’s economic recovery in a safe, sustainable, and equitable way. The SFMTA received four submittals for the permit program and will issue permits to two operators : Spin and Lime. Permits will be in effect for a one-year term, with the option to extend for another year at the discretion of the SFMTA based on compliance with various program metrics. While the new permit program does not set a limit on the number of scooters each operator may deploy, it does limit the overall citywide fleet size at 10,000. Starting at a base of 2,000 scooters...

What a Year It Has Been! Let the Celebration of Transit Month Continue

What a Year It Has Been! Let the Celebration of Transit Month Continue By Erin McMillan 49 Van Ness/Mission using the brand new bus rapid transit lanes on opening day in April. During Transit Month this September, we’re continuing the celebration by looking back to more of the work we’ve done over the last year— some that has been less obvious to Muni customers, but critical to a well-functioning system and other work that is more front and center. Fix It! Week and Continuing State of good Repair Work Muni is an impressive transit system. Moving thousands of people on rail and buses every day takes a lot of coordination and a lot of work. Dealing with unique challenges like San Francisco’s geography and shifting travel patterns, we also have to deal with issues related to the Muni system’s age. Proper care and maintenance of a transit system many decades old takes strategic planning as regular maintenance needs to happen while continuing to provide service. Typically, regular Mun...

Permanent Relief for Muni Customers in SoMa?

Permanent Relief for Muni Customers in SoMa? By Erin McMillan Shortly after the pandemic’s onset, the SFMTA implemented Temporary Emergency Transit Lanes to make sure essential trips on Muni wouldn’t get caught in traffic. On Mission Street from 11th to 3rd streets in SoMa , the transit lanes have proven effective at protecting Muni travel times while traffic has increased. Now, with the city’s reopening generating even more traffic, keeping these lanes on the road permanently is as important as ever. Paint Shop Crew Removing Old Pavement Markings for Installation of Transit Only Lanes on Mission Street on September 23, 2020 What’s Next? Given that the data shows the lanes are effective, the SFMTA is now pursing making the full-time transit lanes, and their benefits, permanent. Following up on our initial evaluation of the project, we are now inviting the community to learn about next steps for making the lanes permanent. We are hosting a two-week virtual open house where you ca...

New Customer Information System Signs Coming to a Transit Shelter Near You!

New Customer Information System Signs Coming to a Transit Shelter Near You! By Kharima Mohamed As part of the Next Generation Customer Information System project, over 700 new Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) signs will display real-time information at Muni transit shelters. Approximately one-third of these signs will be double-sided to provide additional visibility at the highest-ridership stops and major transfer points. This week we installed a single-sided prototype at Eddy and Larkin streets. Serving the Tenderloin, an Equity Neighborhood , this sign will feature real-time predictions for the 19 Polk and 31 Balboa routes. The primary purpose for installing this prototype is to conduct in-field hardware testing, especially with rain, wind and colder temperatures. We know there is an urgent need for more effective signage and are excited to roll out the new customer information system later this year. The new LCD signs will eventually replace all existing Next...

Agra: All historical monuments except Taj Mahal to reopen from September 1 https://ift.tt/2YnrJQd

The Agra district administration on Thursday announced that all historical monuments here, other than the Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort, will reopen from September 1. District Magistrate P.N. Singh said that the monuments -- Fatehpur Sikri, Sikandara, Etmauddaulabs tom, Ram Bagh, Mehtab Bagh and a few other smaller ones would be thrown open to public, but with a set of conditions.

Jason Roy chooses one between Rohit Sharma, David Warner as his opening partner https://ift.tt/3fkBiWu

Rohit Sharma and David Warner are two of the most destructive openers in the limited-overs format. The duo had been reigning the opening spot for their respective sides for years. Both the players continue to be the mainstays for their countries in all the three formats of the game. from IndiaTV: Google News Feed https://ift.tt/2ZjgDNe

The Future of Slow Streets

The Future of Slow Streets By Eillie Anzilotti Over the past two years, Slow Streets have shown how simple designs that prioritize people can transform streets. Suddenly, streets across San Francisco filled with the sounds of kids playing and neighbors chatting. They filled with people on bicycles and people rolling in wheelchairs; with joggers and dog-walkers. The streets came to life. Initially, the SFMTA introduced Slow Streets as an emergency response to COVID-19. People needed space for recreating at a safe distance outdoors. And with Muni service reduced or suspended at the time, people needed ways to travel to essential destinations on foot or bike. To quickly meet these early pandemic needs, we implemented Slow Streets with simple signs and barricades. Over time, it became clear that Slow Streets served an even larger purpose. They became places for communities to come together. Neighbors organized events like scavenger hunts and Trick or Treat parties around their local Sl...

New top story from Time: How the GameStop Trading Surge Will Transform Wall Street

https://ift.tt/3a6hpB2 For years, professional money managers and hedge funds have tsk-tsked about individual investors. They have dismissed them as “dumb money” and cautioned that so-called “retail” investors lack the acumen and experience to make the right calls and weather the inevitable storms. That has often been the case, but then came the GameStop phenomenon , when a tsunami of that so-called dumb money flooded parts of the stock market, leaving Wall Street professionals not just scratching their heads but a few of them badly wounded . And while this might be an anomaly, it more likely is the first rumbling of what will prove to be radical transformation of money and markets. In less than a week, shares of the company GameStop rose more than seventeen-fold by the end of trading on January 27 after its prospects were touted two weeks ago on a Reddit sub-group called r /wallstreetbets that has several million subscribers. GameStop, a retail chain that started as a hu...

Geary Boulevard Improvement Project Update

Geary Boulevard Improvement Project Update By Amy Fowler Geary Boulevard is a critical east-west arterial and one of the busiest bus corridors in North America, connecting downtown San Francisco to the Richmond District. The SFMTA has been busy working on the second phase of planned improvements on Geary, called the Geary Boulevard Improvement Project , to improve Muni’s 38 Geary bus service and address traffic safety between 34th Avenue and Stanyan Street. The project is building on the success of the Geary Rapid Project , which was recently completed on time and on budget and has already shown promising travel time savings on the eastern half of the Geary corridor. Last fall, we asked neighbors in the Richmond about their priorities for transit, safety and driving issues on Geary via pop-up events on the corridor and a Virtual Open House. Thanks to input from over 600 community members , the SFMTA has used this feedback to draft the detailed, block-by-bloc...

SFMTA to Replace All Parking Meters in the City

SFMTA to Replace All Parking Meters in the City By Jessie Liang San Franciscans will see new parking meters on city streets beginning in early March 2022. Staff from the SFMTA’s Parking Meter Shop will replace the meters at all the nearly 27,000 paid parking spaces in the city because those meters have reached the end of their useful lives, and because many of the meters rely on 3G communications technology that soon will be phased out by the wireless companies. The first new meters will be installed in the South of Market and Mission Bay neighborhoods. SFMTA staff will provide notices on vehicle windshields when the new meters are activated. The new meters will provide several benefits, including larger and more legible screens, more intuitive user interface, more powerful batteries, and more resistance to vandalism. The following neighborhoods will move to a pay-by-license-plate system with new paystations. South Beach SoMa Mission Bay Civic Center H...

My precise view

Search This Blog