Micromobility encompasses most small one-person vehicles that operate at low speeds and are not gas-powered, from active modes like walking and cycling to skateboards, electric bicycles, kick scooters, wheelchairs, and mobility scooters. 

When we talk about micromobility we should consider that it is: 

Powered by humans or electricity 

Micromobility can be electric and human-powered. Micromobility includes walking and cycling (human-powered), as well as electric bicycles, cargo bikes, wheelchairs, kick scooters and more. Such small vehicles are considered micromobility when they have operating speeds below 25 km/h. 

For passenger and goods transport

Micromobility can be for passenger and goods transport. While we generally think of micromobility as transport for a single passenger, it also includes cargo bikes and other (electric) cargo solutions, to transport goods for deliveries, or to be used by families to carry their children. 

Privately owned or shared publicly 

Micromobility can be private or public/rented vehicles. Certain micromobility modes are well established, such as walking and cycling, but the micromobility concept really picked up with the spread of public bicycle sharing systems in the 2010s and more recently with the emergence of shared electric kick scooters in cities around the world, which enabled short-term, one-way, shared use of these transport modes

Connecting with public transport

Micromobility is suitable for short urban trips and provides connections with (public) transport. Micromobility is key to providing intermodality (using multiple modes to complete a trip): to connect from home to the nearest bus or train station, ferry landing site or Park & Ride, and to complete your trip to your final destination: school, work, shop, etc.

Micromobility encompasses most small one-person vehicles that operate at low speeds and are not gas-powered, from active modes like walking and cycling to skateboards, electric bicycles, kick scooters, wheelchairs, and mobility scooters. 

What do you know about micromobility? Survey results of the MICROMOBI project

In our MICROMOBI project, Friends of the Earth Malta, together with project partners from Cyprus, Sicily (Italy) and Ljubljana (Slovenia), are developing skills and raising awareness on the topic of micromobility. As urban trips are on average just 5 km long, there is a lot of potential for shifting trips to smaller and greener vehicles. However, to promote micromobility, there is the need for safe infrastructure and improved road safety – the number one concern for people to use micromobility. This is particularly the case in countries with a high car dependence, such as Malta, Cyprus and Italy. These – and similar – countries can learn from positive examples, such as the sustainable mobility transition in Slovenia. With this project, we address the need to educate both the (potential) users about micromobility skills (how to safely participate in traffic, road safety rules), as well as other road users and the people in charge of planning and managing this transition, such as urban and transport planners, and people working for relevant government authorities.

At the start of our project, we ran a survey in the four participating countries, to better understand what people know and think about micromobility. The survey was answered by over 200 respondents (Malta: 44, Cyprus: 78, Ljubljana (Slovenia): 59 and Sicily (Italy): 22). While not a representative sample, the results give us an idea of the understanding of micromobility in our cities and countries. Here are our key findings: 

• Generally, participants of the survey know about micromobility (around 60% of the respondents in Malta, Cyprus and Slovenia). Respondents from Italy were less informed, around 35%. 
• When asked what modes of transport micromobility includes, most participants of the survey gave correct answers such as (electric) bicycles and kick scooters. However, some respondents also incorrectly included electric motorbikes and cars, whereas only a third of respondents correctly included wheelchairs. These results show that there is a need to raise more awareness on what is micromobility, and what is not included. 
• There are stark differences between the respondents’ current use of micromobility between the countries: 98% of respondents from Slovenia use micromobility regularly, around 70% of respondents from Italy and Malta and 54% of respondents from Cyprus. The main reason that respondents gave for not using micromobility for transport are the dangerous conditions and road safety concerns. 
• Across all surveyed respondents, 78% answered that they would regularly use micromobility if there were designated safe lanes and parking areas for micromobility vehicles in the city where they live. 

Finally, when asked what would encourage people to use micromobility (more), these are the words mentioned the most (with larger words mentioned more often): 

MICROMOBI

As part of our new transnational MICROMOBI project, Friends of the Earth Malta aims to develop skills and raise awareness on the topic of micromobility. 

We are organising several events and workshops on micromobility use and safe road practices in our cities, tips for vulnerable road users, among other important topics. 

To join or volunteer for our upcoming workshops and other similar events please contact Suzanne at suzanne@foemalta.org.  

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube and check the latest news on micromobility here:  

MICROMOBI NEWS