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Katie Woolf spoke with Darwin City Council CEO Scott Waters regarding the eScooters · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Three sixty with Katie wolf On mixed one oh four
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  Speaker 1: point nine thanks to Joyce Main Darwin.
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  Speaker 2: Well.
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  Speaker 1: I think we all love those scooters, the East scooters
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  Speaker 1: that we've seen floating around or that we've maybe had
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  Speaker 1: a crack at ourselves over the long weekend. There's plenty
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  Speaker 1: of people out and the about on those scooters, but
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  Speaker 1: there are some areas where there've been a few falls,
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  Speaker 1: a few concerns, and it's raised the concern obviously of
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  Speaker 1: some territorians also the Council. And joining me on the
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  Speaker 1: line right now is Scott Waters, the CEO of the
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  Speaker 1: Darwin City Council. Good morning to you.
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  Speaker 2: Scott, Hey, Katie, how you going very well? Now?
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  Speaker 1: Scott, talk us through what changes we're going to see
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  Speaker 1: implemented when it comes to these scooters.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, we'll look near on have advised not only Council
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  Speaker 2: but also the Northern Territory Government that they will be
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  Speaker 2: implementing a range of new measures that will be flowing
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  Speaker 2: those scooters down so the ability for them to be
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  Speaker 2: able to have any speed going through any intersection at all,
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  Speaker 2: enduring writer behavior is at the absolute maximum that it
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  Speaker 2: possibly can be prompting continually for anybody that's on a
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  Speaker 2: scooter to ensure that they are wearing a helmet, that
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  Speaker 2: they're riding responsibly, that they haven't consumed alcohol prior to
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  Speaker 2: riding the scooters, and that they are aware of that
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  Speaker 2: surroundings and the route that they're actually taking while they're
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  Speaker 2: on the scoot up as they would with any other
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  Speaker 2: type of mobility device orhether it be a bicycle or
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  Speaker 2: a scooter of their own, or a skateboard or anything.
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  Speaker 2: You need to be able to have some self awareness
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  Speaker 2: of what you have around you.
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  Speaker 1: That's been the concern, hasn't it. I mean, like you know,
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  Speaker 1: some people I know in not every case of a fall,
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  Speaker 1: I know, not absolutely everybody's been intoxicated, But I think
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  Speaker 1: that's been a bit of a worry, is it. Sometimes
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  Speaker 1: people have a couple of drinks and think, oh, I'm
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  Speaker 1: going to get on this scooter. It's going to be
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  Speaker 1: heaps of fun and end up face planting.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah. Look, it's been an unfortunate reality of the trial
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  Speaker 2: that there have been some that have been using the
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  Speaker 2: scooters late the evening. Seems like a lot of fun,
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  Speaker 2: but you need to be responsible. You know, it is
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  Speaker 2: a vehicle like any other and there is legislative change
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  Speaker 2: that's required to be able to enforce the whole range
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  Speaker 2: of restrictions around that, and the Northern Territory government are
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  Speaker 2: working to deliver that. But until that time, you know,
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  Speaker 2: there are some loopholes and what Neuron is asking. But
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  Speaker 2: then Counsel, as the owner of the roads and the footpaths,
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  Speaker 2: is for those that are operate them to be able
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  Speaker 2: to operate them like you would anything else. Be responsible,
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  Speaker 2: understand your surrounding. We're a helmet and don't head through
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  Speaker 2: an intersection in the middle of the night and expect
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  Speaker 2: that it's going to be a good outcome. Be aware
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  Speaker 2: of what you're doing and have a look what's happening
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  Speaker 2: around you.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, do we have any data Scott when it comes
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  Speaker 1: to like the number of sort of serious fools that
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  Speaker 1: they've been.
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  Speaker 2: Look Neuron do and I understand that they will shortly
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  Speaker 2: be starting to be able to publish some of the
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  Speaker 2: data that they have had as part of the trial,
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  Speaker 2: and that's going to be really important to understand as
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  Speaker 2: to how we then take these devices full because they
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  Speaker 2: have been a great success and they've done some really
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  Speaker 2: good things for the city. But at the same time,
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  Speaker 2: we need to be able to understand some of the
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  Speaker 2: other impacts that have occurred. We've worked with you on
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  Speaker 2: to ensure that that cleanliness and the way that the
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  Speaker 2: scooters are presented are a lot better than what they
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  Speaker 2: have been. So that's been a criticism and what we
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  Speaker 2: had during a trial to be able to understand that better.
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  Speaker 2: They're working on that, but now it's about safety of
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  Speaker 2: the writer, but then all those around as well too.
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  Speaker 2: How do we make this better? And I know that
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  Speaker 2: they'll be putting some more details out very soon.
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  Speaker 1: How much longer does the trial actually go for?
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, look, it's been extended once already. Sitting from a
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  Speaker 2: bureaucratic perspective, I'm probably not a physician to push for
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  Speaker 2: any further extensions. The issue that we do need to
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  Speaker 2: undertake and have in place is that legislation is in
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  Speaker 2: place to be able to allow these to operate effectively.
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  Speaker 2: Once that legislation is in place, we were now to
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  Speaker 2: go out to the market for an open tender because
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  Speaker 2: there are other operators across the world that are operating
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  Speaker 2: these in different cities and we would need to be
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  Speaker 2: able to test the market around that. Neuron's been a
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  Speaker 2: fantastic trial, and I'm sure they'd be part of any
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  Speaker 2: process in the future, but we do need to take
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  Speaker 2: that out on an open basis. So I think we're
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  Speaker 2: probably getting to close to two to three months out
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  Speaker 2: on that, and we need to understand a little bit
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  Speaker 2: better as to what next steps is going to be.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, So at the end of that trial period, realistically,
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  Speaker 1: as you've said, you're not going to we're not going
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  Speaker 1: to be in a situation where it can be extended.
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  Speaker 1: There will have to be that actual tendering process happen.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, there's got to be there's got to be a
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  Speaker 2: tender We can't continue to have trial after trial. But
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  Speaker 2: then again, there's so many users. You know, we need
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  Speaker 2: the legislative change to occur first. Once our legislation is
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  Speaker 2: in place, then we can go out to the market
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  Speaker 2: confidently and be able to talk to the operators globally.
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  Speaker 2: Here's what's occurred in DAR and here's what we've learned
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  Speaker 2: from the trial, and these are the types of condition
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  Speaker 2: that we would put forward. Councils and needs to look
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  Speaker 2: at different islands as to revenue that we may be
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  Speaker 2: able to raise as a result of this as well,
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  Speaker 2: that purely comes down to the utilization of the footpath
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  Speaker 2: and all of our different facilities that we're helping facilitate
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  Speaker 2: the commercial venture as to what they are.
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  Speaker 1: So I mean, is it the intention of Council that
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  Speaker 1: we do continue to have scooters.
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  Speaker 2: Look, it's really a decision for our elected members around that.
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  Speaker 2: I know that there is a lot of support, but
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  Speaker 2: of recently there is also a lot of concern as well,
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  Speaker 2: and we have had the team from Neuron come and
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  Speaker 2: speak to Council advice of all of the different pieces
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  Speaker 2: of work that they're doing to be able to make
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  Speaker 2: this safer and we're looking forward to them talking to
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  Speaker 2: the community further about the different safety measures that they
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  Speaker 2: all be putting in place as the trial is continuing
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  Speaker 2: to go on.
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  Speaker 1: Scott. When we talk about that legislation, what exactly needs
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  Speaker 1: to change, Yeah.
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  Speaker 2: It is being able to recognize these particular devices as
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  Speaker 2: vehicles on the road and as such that there will
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  Speaker 2: then be those same laws that are applied to those
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  Speaker 2: that are currently there right now. So it is a
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  Speaker 2: situation where technology is getting ahead of the legislation and
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  Speaker 2: we need to be able to have that incorporated. So
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  Speaker 2: there's some work that's being done between one of my
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  Speaker 2: departments and Infrastructure Planning and Logistics with the Northern Territory
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  Speaker 2: government to achieve this well.
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  Speaker 1: Scott Waters, the CEO of the City of Darwin, always
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  Speaker 1: appreciate your time. Thanks so much for having a chat
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  Speaker 1: with us this morning.
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  Speaker 2: Greatious all Katie, thank you, thank you.