OSU Transportation Services and ASOSU have released a mid-year update and data for the shared electric scooter and bike program showing that students are adopting the vehicles as a convenient, affordable and environmentally friendly transportation option to, from and around the Corvallis campus. Through a partnership with micromobility vendor Veo, a one-year pilot of the program brought a fleet of 400 bikes and scooters to campus and has since expanded to reach student housing and businesses off campus.
Veo scooters and bikes are rented on a per-trip basis using a smartphone app. The vehicles are speed capped, and certain areas of campus are designated no-ride zones for safety. No-ride zones and the outer boundaries of the service area are controlled via geo-fencing. A team of local Veo employees are tasked with maintaining the fleet, locating and returning vehicles to designated parking areas, balancing the volume of vehicles in bike racks around campus and other services.
The pilot program is part of OSU’s Sustainable Transportation Strategy, which was adopted in 2020. The strategy identifies 15 actions ranging from encouraging flexible carpooling to increasing connections between Beaver Bus routes and the Corvallis Transit System. Action 13, Shared Micromobility, aligns with the current program managed by Veo. Action 13 recommends “a robust system of shared bicycles, scooters or other micromobility devices” that could provide students and employees with connections to transit or nearby locations off campus. It also states that micromobility could be used to replace driving trips.
The ridership data available through March 19 shows a total of 120,385 rides since the program launched with over 157,000 miles logged. The median trip distance was one mile or about five minutes.
A survey of OSU riders conducted by Veo in November 2024, three months after the program’s launch, found that 63% were using the vehicles to commute to or from work or classes. Other top reasons given were traveling for errands or appointments, visiting friends or family and traveling to events, entertainment or recreation. The same survey found that 76% of riders were using the vehicles specifically to reach their destinations quickly and avoid car parking, traffic and transit transfers, 74% stated that they had been able to decrease car travel as a result of the shared vehicles.
Offering affordable options remains a top priority for Transportation Services and bringing shared scooters and bikes to campus supports that goal. In addition to the standard payment model, the pilot includes Veo Access, a program that offers reduced rental fees to riders who qualify for Pell grants or other public assistance programs.
Veo has recently expanded the boundaries of their service area to include the Yugo Domain, Oak Vale and Witham Hill apartment complexes, which serve as off-campus student housing. The boundary expansion makes Veo an attractive alternative to daily car commuting to campus.
Safety for both riders and pedestrians has been a top concern since the program’s launch. Transportation Services has provided outreach directly to students through informational material distributed to residence halls and other central locations on campus. The Veo app also pushes reminders to riders to follow best practices and laws regarding helmet use, operating vehicles under the influence of drugs or alcohol and sharing the road with pedestrians and other vehicles. Transportation Services, Student Health Services and the Department of Public Safety have been distributing free helmets to riders.
Parking availability for the Veo vehicles was another concern voiced by many in the OSU community at the start of the pilot. Transportation Services is continuing to monitor bike parking capacity during the Veo pilot and is planning to add three shared scooter parking corrals in high-use areas later this spring.
Questions or comments about the micromobility pilot can be directed to [email protected]. Improperly parked or abandoned Veo vehicles or overfilled bike racks may be reported to Veo at [email protected].
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