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Can One E-Scooter Framework Meet the Needs of All Riders? A Behavioural Investigation of Rider Diversity and Safety in Queensland
Dissertation

Can One E-Scooter Framework Meet the Needs of All Riders? A Behavioural Investigation of Rider Diversity and Safety in Queensland

Vida Mehranfar
University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
Doctor of Philosophy, University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
2026
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25907/01058
pdf
V.Mehranfar_Thesis21.91 MB
Thesis Embargoed Access, Embargo ends: 28-Jun-2027 CC BY-NC V4.0

Abstract

Cognition e-mobility personal mobility devices private e-scooters shared e-scooters risky behaviour safety outcomes regulatory framework compliance enforcement
Electric scooters (e-scooters) have reshaped urban mobility through their affordability, convenience, and reduced environmental impact, yet there is growing public concern over the rising number and severity of e-scooter-related crashes. Queensland, the first Australian jurisdiction to legalise shared e-scooters in 2018, faces a challenge of ensuring its regulatory framework delivers intended e-scooter safety outcomes while sustaining mobility benefits. This PhD examined whether policies can adequately govern both shared and privately-owned e-scooters in Queensland. Shared devices are governed through local contracts with capped speeds, geofencing, and regular safety checks, offering practical enforcement mechanisms. Private e-scooters, by contrast, vary widely in design and safety features, often lack oversight, and can be modified to exceed legal speeds. While technological control is more achievable for shared fleets, the behavioural dimension underpinning safety outcomes across both ownership types has remained poorly understood. The knowledge gap is addressed in this PhD through a multi-method design integrating four complementary studies: a systematic literature review (168 studies); a statewide survey of self-reported behaviour (461 riders); observational fieldwork (191 riders); and analysis of submissions to the Queensland Parliamentary Inquiry into e-Mobility Safety (2025; 1,212 submissions). Together, these data constitute one of the most comprehensive understandings of e-scooter riding in Australia, enabling triangulation of perceived, observed, and regulated behaviour across ownership types. The findings demonstrate that rider behaviour is far from uniform. Novice riders exhibited unintentional errors arising from limited skill and rule unfamiliarity, while experienced male riders, users of private e-scooters, and commuters showed deliberate non-compliance driven by overconfidence and perceived low risk of enforcement. In these cohorts, situational risk perception at the point of decision-making often outweighs considerations of legality, underscoring the need for stronger accountability and more effective regulation. Shared e-scooter users, frequently novices undertaking infrequent leisure trips, reported confusion about rules and on-street signage, contributing to unintentional violations and heightened risk. The findings indicate that Queensland’s Personal Mobility Device (PMD) framework, while effective in supporting e-mobility uptake, lacks the differentiation needed to manage distinct patterns of use and risk across shared and private e-scooter riders. Cross-validation against the Parliamentary Inquiry confirmed that these regulatory gaps are broadly acknowledged by stakeholders. Recommendations developed in this PhD were presented and adopted by the Parliamentary, incorporating behavioural evidence and ownership-specific safety needs, and enabling both e-scooter types to be retained whilst reducing rider risk and injury severity.

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