Do scooters obstruct access—or attention? Perceptions of sidewalk conflicts and overlooked causes of obstruction

Shared e-scooters have drawn heightened attention from the public and policymakers due to theirpotential to block sidewalk access, an issue especially salient for people with disabilities. Yetscooters are only one of many sidewalk obstructions. Is the focus on them disproportionate—andpotentially biased? To assess whether people see scooters differently than other obstructions, weadministered an online survey to 2,347 US adults. We measured scooter versus bike bias in twoways. A between-subjects measure reveals that respondents are less accepting of scooters thanidentically positioned bikes in some settings, especially when the appropriateness of the parking isambiguous. A within-subjects measure reveals limited scooter bias: only 15% of respondents aremore annoyed by a scooter than an identically placed bike. How do people see scooters relative toother common sidewalk obstructions? Respondents say signs and automobiles block sidewalksmore frequently than scooters, and that car obstructions are the most annoying. As sidewalksnarrow, people become substantially more annoyed. We find that people with and without mobilitydisabilities are equally annoyed by sidewalk obstructions, but the former report encountering themmore often.We find broad public support for policies to manage scooter parking, with more support amongpeople most annoyed by scooters and people with mobility disabilities. Both groups raiseimportant concerns about designating scarce sidewalk space for scooter parking. Overall findingssuggest that scooters, while salient, may distract attention from broader sidewalk accessibilityissues including more common sidewalk obstructions and narrow sidewalks that intensify conflict.