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Council member Busby raises scooter-on-sidewalk concern; counsel says state law generally bars vehicles on sidewalks
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Summary
Council Member Busby asked the committee to address a growing problem with motorized standing scooters on sidewalks in his district. Counsel said state code defines "vehicle" broadly and that shared-mobility rules cover rental fleets but not privately owned stand-up scooters, suggesting mapped or targeted sidewalk restrictions rather than an immediate citywide ban.
Council Member Busby asked the committee to open a conversation about motorized standing scooters being ridden on sidewalks in his district and whether the city can or should take action.
Busby described frequent sidewalk scooter use near downtown and neighborhood streets and said the devices range from children on small scooters to older teenagers "flying" downtown. He asked whether it is legal to ride those devices on sidewalks and whether police could enforce current law.
Counsel provided a statutory read of state law and local code definitions. He summarized the statutory distinctions between "motor vehicle," "vehicle," "motor driven cycle" and a statutory definition of "scooter," and said that under a plain reading the state prohibition that "no person shall drive any vehicle upon a sidewalk" covers stand-up electric scooters: "It is not legal to ride these on the sidewalk under state law." Counsel also explained the separate statutory category of "shared micro mobility device," which governs rental fleets (such as the scooter companies considered in prior years) but does not cover privately owned devices; that gap, counsel said, limits the city's regulatory tools for non-shared scooters.
"We didn't authorize them and we didn't want them," counsel said of a prior scooter company; he described past enforcement actions and legislative changes that allowed municipalities to regulate shared fleets. The counsel suggested that one solution would be to expand local code language or designate specific sidewalks as pedestrian‑only areas rather than attempting a blanket prohibition across the whole city.
Council members raised enforcement fairness concerns, noting that selective citation across neighborhoods could raise equity and implementation questions. A staff member urged taking time to develop a citywide plan that works uniformly rather than beginning with uneven enforcement: "I'd rather sit back, get an actual plan that works for everybody rather than just start writing citations."
Counsel said he has spoken with a counterpart (Ron Jones) and that university traffic studies and consultant work are expected this summer; Busby asked staff to coordinate briefings with the university and to vet a mapped approach with staff (Bridal, Blankley) before returning to the council with a draft ordinance.
Next steps: Staff and counsel will review options for code language or mapped sidewalk designations, coordinate with university traffic studies, and return to the committee with more-vetted language and a recommended enforcement approach. The item was presented for discussion only; no formal motion or vote was taken.
