‘There is energy’ for e-scooters in Missoula

Bret Anne Serbin

The Missoula City Council directed staff to continue exploring micromobility options like e-scooters and a bike-share program Wednesday.

The city previously tabled an effort to bring in micromobility devices because of the lack of oversight in the industry, but Associate Planner Zoe Walters said recent changes have reinvigorated the conversation in Missoula.

This year, Walters and others with the city started investigating peer city examples — Bend, Oregon, and Bozeman — as well as local stakeholder input around potential micromobility initiatives.

Stacker compiled a list of the fastest-growing cities in Montana using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Cities are ranked by the highest population growth from 2010 to 2020.

City councilors Wednesday were overwhelmingly supportive of an ongoing discussion around micromobility, although plenty of questions and concerns also swirled at the meeting.

Council members wondered about micromobility programs impacting ADA accessibility, necessitating more staff time and creating safety hazards. Ward 3 Councilwoman Gwen Jones reminded council about earlier rumblings of a public desire to throw the devices into the Clark Fork River, an outcome she described as “not good on many levels.”

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