We thank council for the opportunity to provide feedback on Item 7.1. E-Bike Share.
Streets Alive Yarra supports Yarra’s statement that:
At Yarra Every Job is a Climate Job. Acting on the climate emergency requires that we change the way we think, make decisions, and prioritise action. We must embed proactive climate responses in the ways we govern, live our lives, and conduct our work. Every choice we make today and into the future will have an impact; this is true for Council and the community.
With that in mind, we are astounded at the officer recommendation to resolve not to award a contract for a permanent e-bike share scheme in Yarra, because shared e-bikes act to reduce climate emissions from transport.
Yarra residents and Yarra visitors use share e-bikes, just like residents and visitors use cars. They are both modes of transport that should be supported. If we are looking through a climate lens, then shared e-bikes should be supported more than driving.
If shared e-bikes are causing problems by being ridden on footpaths, then the solution is to make it safe to ride on our streets, by expanding 30 km/h zones to reduce vehicle speeds, adding modal filters to reduce vehicle volumes, and building a network of protected bike lanes.
If shared e-bikes are causing problems by being parked on footpaths, then the solution is to add an on-street bike parking corral to every street in Yarra, and require e-bike users to park the bikes in those corrals. In most streets a corral could be installed in a space that is too small for a car parking bay. If required, a vehicle parking bay could be reallocated.
If shared e-bikes are causing problems regarding costs to council, then the solution is to review how council subsidises transport overall. If council wishes to apply a condition of financial sustainability to transport, i.e. not subsidising it, then it should apply that condition in a consistent manner to each mode.
Yarra has about 47,000 on-street parking bays, which are offered for use at well below market rates, which is a huge subsidy, worth more than $100 million per year.
If council wishes to reduce carbon emissions from transport, and wishes to reduce its subsidy of transport, then the solution is to roll out paid parking across the municipality, via metered parking zones that exempt vehicles with local residential or visitor parking permits. Doing so would enable council to easily cover the cost of converting some car parking bays into corrals for shared e-bikes, or any other costs that council bears in relation to shared bikes.
As an example, if Yarra was covered with metered parking, but limited sales of all-day tickets to only ⅓ of the bays, so as to protect ⅔ of the bays for residents, visitors and shoppers, and a daily ticket cost $20, and sales only occurred on 250 out of 365 days per year, then the annual revenue would be $78 million (1/3 x 47,000 x 250 x $20 = $78 million). That’s enough to pay down the debt, and build a new community hub in North Richmond, all from only one year of revenue!
In summary, we urge council to think more broadly and holistically about transport in Yarra, and find a way to make a share e-bike scheme work for everyone.