By Mary O’KEEFE

Glendale city staff will be exploring a Request for Proposal to select a vendor in regard to allowing e-bikes and charging docks in the city. 

“The details as to requirements [like docks, geo-fencing and other issues] and types of mobility products, like e-scooters, e-bikes or [other vehicles], and [a] pilot phase are yet to be determined,” according to a city spokesperson. 

This is something the Glendale City Council has heard during meetings on a few occasions. Many cities, including Santa Monica and Los Angeles, offer e-bikes and/or e-scooters for rent. People use these devices to get around town as opposed to driving or walking. In some cases the program works very well; however, there have been complaints from businesses and residents. 

There have been complaints about mechanical issues and charging practices, including difficulty for riders to get refunds. As is with the e-bike trend in general, the popularity of these bikes has grown faster than city officials can write regulations.

One Glendale resident who does not want the city to take any shortcuts in their review of this e-bike/e-scooter practice is Tony Passarella, who has spoken in front of Glendale City Council several times. 

He said he has spent a lot of time in Santa Monica, where he rode his traditional bike, and witnessed e-scooters lying in the middle of sidewalks or blocking doors of businesses. In 2019, when the City of Glendale was thinking of the e-bike/e-scooter rental program he spoke against it 14 times. 

He worries about many aspects of the e-bike/e-scooter program, including the safety of the vehicles and riders who do not follow traffic rules.

According to a 2022 study published in National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, cities have seen escalating safety concerns regarding e-scooter collisions, parking predicaments and inadequate infrastructure. 

There is also a cost to accessing e-bike rentals. Some cities have worked to find creative ways to help residents with the associated costs. Long Beach has an e-bike lending library pilot program. It is using funding from the Long Beach Recovery Act to provide 35 electric bikes for a rental period of up to three months at no charge to selected applicants. This is a different program from one where people just rent an e-scooter or e-bike to travel from one place to another in the city. 

These issues are what Glendale city staff is researching as it moves forward and why it is taking its time to make certain it looks at all aspects of any proposal. 

“The RFP process will allow the City to invite vendors to submit proposals for City Council’s ultimate consideration and direction. We are a few months out on this effort at this time; likely a year out from implementation of any project from our estimates,” stated the spokesperson.