City of Gainesville Micromobility Program

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The City of Gainesville is constantly looking for innovative ways to expand and enhance mobility options. The micromobility program consists of a fleet of shared mobility devices, such as e-scooters and bicycles, for short-term rental. The devices are available in the right-of-way for ease of use and to facilitate mobility and access. This is one more way the city is furthering healthy, economical and environmentally sustainable transportation alternatives.

Through this pilot program users can rent devices such as dockless bikes or scooters, equipped with GPS technology, without the need to return them to a specific location. Most companies offer smartphone applications where riders can locate a device, unlock it and pay for the trip.

Through a local ordinance, the city regulates the operation of these micromobility devices to further ensure the safety of riders, promote equitable service and help protect neighborhood character.

Always follow safety guidelines when riding, including: 

  • Obey all traffic laws, signs and signals
  • Follow all the same rules as bicyclists
  • Ride with the flow of traffic
  • Ride as close to the edge or curb of the roadway, unless passing, turning or avoiding a condition or potential conflict
  • Yield to pedestrians
  • Do not ride at night if lights are inoperable
  • Do not ride while wearing headphones
  • Wear a helmet
  • Never ride under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol
  • Other important safety information:

How and Where to Park

The Dos
  • Devices should be parked upright at all times.
  • Park in designated parking areas or near racks when possible.
  • Always maintain a minimum five-foot clear pedestrian path on sidewalks.

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The Don’ts
  • Don’t park on private property, including front yards
  • Don’t block sidewalks, curb ramps, wheelchair ramps or bus stops.
  • Don’t block fire hydrants, call boxes or other emergency facilities.
  • Don’t block driveways or on-street parking spaces.
  • Don’t park in the street, unless in bike/scooter corrals.
  • Don’t park in loading or freight zones.
  • Don’t park in parking garages.
  • Don’t park in building entryways.

Don't park scooters blocking ramps or sidewalks. Don't park scooters blocking the sidewalk or right-of-way.

Designated Parking Areas

The City of Gainesville has created preferred micromobility parking areas within the public rights-of-way, on and off-street. These areas have been identified to encourage consolidated and orderly parking in busy areas. These are not signed or marked, but may be viewed in each vendor’s app. Coming soon: Look out for incentives like ride credit for parking in these preferred areas. In addition to the preferred micromobility parking areas, users may park devices in the public rights-of-way in accordance with city guidelines (see “How and Where to Park”).

The University of Florida has also created dedicated micromobility parking spaces within its campus. When parking on UF’s campus, users are required to use these parking spaces and may not park elsewhere. For more information about parking on campus please visit University of Florida Micromobility (E-Scooters) Program.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the benefits to allowing for micromobility operations?

  • Creates another affordable mobility option
  • Promotes sustainability and active transportation
  • Increases recreational opportunities
  • Complements existing transit service by offering “first-mile / last-mile” connectivity
  • Helps reduce traffic congestion and pollution by replacing automobile trips, reduces auto parking demand

How do I rent a bike or scooter?

  • Download the app associated with the device you want to ride.
  • Fill out the information needed to obtain a membership via the app.
  • While using the app, scan the QR code on the device.
  • The device will typically make an audible noise to indicate that it is unlocking.
  • Before you start your ride, make sure the kickstand is up and in the riding position.
  • To end your rental, make sure the device is parked correctly, with the kickstand engaged, and lock the device.

Where can I ride?

Micromobility devices may be ridden on streets and sidewalks, unless otherwise prohibited.

Are there areas where I’m not allowed to ride?

To ensure the safety and comfort of pedestrians, the city of Gainesville has identified “prohibited zones” and “slow zones” (8 mph max). For specific locations of prohibited and slow zones, please refer to within the maps of each company’s app,

Are helmets required to ride a bike or scooter?

Helmets are not required but are strongly encouraged.

How fast will the motorized scooters go?

The city of Gainesville restricts the maximum speed for micromobility devices to 15 mph.

How will the City of Gainesville monitor this program?

The City of Gainesville Transportation and Mobility Department will receive data from the permitted vendors during the course of the pilot program. The data shared is non-sensitive information and only pertains to ridership and operation of the system. Ridership data will be posted to this website. The city will also be monitoring customer and community feedback.

Why does the City of Gainesville collect a $0.15 fee per ride?

The $0.15 fee per ride will be used to cover the costs of the program and to implement bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements.

Will there be safety education available for the scooters?

Micromobility vendors are required to provide safety and outreach plans. Click on the following links to learn more about current vendors’ safety education efforts:

https://www.bird.co/safety/

https://www.spin.app/safety

https://www.veoride.com/safety/

How is the City of Gainesville ensuring equitable micromobility service?

The micromobility program requires all participating vendors to provide equity plans that will ensure equitable deployment of micromobility devices (10% of their overall fleet), allow users without capable mobile devices to use the micromobility devices, and have payment/access options for unbanked users.

How do I report an improperly parked bike or scooter?

To report an improperly parked bike or scooter, you can contact the operator directly using the contact information provided on this page, or myGNV.org.

 

Resources: 

  • Gainesville ArcGIS Map
  • The City of Gainesville regulates micromobility in accordance with Ordinance No. 180115.
  • The City of Gainesville is not accepting vendor applications at this time. Please check back for updates.
  • Access the Ride Report for the Micromobility program public dashboard.