The California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) Transportation Department introduced Spin electric scooters to campus at the start of the Spring 2020 semester. Because electric scooters have not been placed on campus since the 2018-2019 academic school year, many CSUMB students are excited to ride them and happy they’ve returned.
During the Fall 2019 semester, many returning CSUMB students were disappointed to find that all of the Lime electric scooters had been removed from campus. Matthew McCluney from the CSUMB Transportation Department explains that, “80% of Spring 2019 survey respondents supported bringing the scooters back to campus after the first year,” of their launch on campus, and the Transportation Department wants to use the scooters to help students and staff “ease commuting burdens as the campus grows and new buildings relocate parking to the campus periphery.”
The scooters are facilitated through the Spin app, and once downloaded, users can see the exact locations of each available scooter in their area, stretching from CSUMB’s Main Campus, surrounding parking lots, and continuing on to East Campus student housing. McCluney also states that, “Spin offers a very similar service and cost model as most scooter companies on the market while having an electric motor that is non-polluting. They provide more flexibility, affordability and safety to all students, faculty and staff.” Each user gets a free $5 credit for their first ride, and the app lists several designated spots for users to park their scooters when they’ve reached their destination.
CSUMB student, Travis Lahey said the Spin scooters are, “the best idea for our campus because it’s so spread out, and that causes issues,” when students walk to class from the more distant parking lots on campus. Lahey also said he has, “used them a few times just for leisure and they’re great!”
Another CSUMB student, Jack Venable, commented the Spin scooters are, “convenient and easy to use.” He likes that the scooters are, “very easy to maintain balance on and don’t seem to cause any traffic problems.”
The affordability, accessibility, and sustainability the Spin scooters present to CSUMB’s surrounding community point them to be a favorable form of transportation on campus, and McCluney reminds students and staff that, “it doesn’t hurt that they are fun – when ridden safely.”
A safety video and additional information regarding the Spin scooters can be found online at https://csumb.edu/transportation/scooters.