The e-scooter elephant in the room and new project portal launch discussed at Inner West transport forum

By PATRICK MCKENZIE

Transport for NSW has discussed the launch of a new projects portal and the progress of the Inner West light rail line repairs, but has not addressed questions about legalising e-scooters on NSW roads and footpaths. 

The events occurred during the first of four planned community transport forums to be hosted by the agency in May, August and November.

This week’s forum was hosted online on Monday evening and saw many residents tune in for updates on various community infrastructure projects.

Chief among the announcements was the launch of the interactive Inner West projects and improvements portal, as part of the agency’s ongoing focus on providing a “better connection to and enjoyment of place” in the Inner West.

Ongoing local projects viewable on the map include the M4-M5 Link Tunnels site on Parramatta Road in Camperdown and upgrades to the accessibility of Stanmore Station, both of which are due for completion in late 2023.

Light rail up and running ahead of schedule

The forum also discussed the reopening of the beleaguered Inner West light rail line, which was closed in October following the discovery of cracks in the entire tram fleet.

Roads and Maritime Services Senior Communications Manager Elisha Pearce reminded viewers that limited services had recommenced as of February 11, with trams arriving every 15 minutes between 6am and 11pm daily.

“We’re still working on fixing some of the vehicles that were running on the service previously … We did initially think it would take 18 months to get some of those back up and running, but we’re hoping that those will be back online by quarter four this year,” Pearce said.

E-scooter e-motions

A small number of attendees also commented on several questions about the legalisation of e-scooters during the livestream.

“Escooters [sic] are supposed to be trialled earlier this year as per your Transport Minister’s press release back in November 2021. What is happening with this trial and getting them legalised?” one person wrote.

While the hosts did not respond to the questions directly, the agency replied to a number of questions via Facebook comments, urging attendees to contact the department with their inquiries via email, and that the matter may be discussed at the next meeting in May.

Riding e-scooters in NSW is currently illegal unless on private property. Nevertheless, they continue to be a common sight on footpaths in the Sydney CBD.

Although currently prohibited in NSW, other cities such as Adelaide, Brisbane and Canberra currently have e-scooter programs operated by private micro-mobility companies such as Lime and Beam.

Beam, a Singaporean company with a modest e-bike presence in Sydney, recently announced that a third of its latest $129 million capital raise would be invested in the growth of the Australian market.

An electric scooter trial in NSW was abandoned in March 2021, with then-Transport Minister Andrew Constance saying that “I am not in the mood for running e-scooter trials at a time like this,” with reference to the ongoing pandemic.