AUSTIN, Texas — The University of Texas at Austin (UT) released new mobility rules for personal electric vehicles (PEVs), including electric bicycles, electric scooters, electric boards, and segways.
UT has designated a Pedestrian Friendly Zone throughout a large swath of campus, including inside Guadalupe St. and San Jacinto Blvd., as well as between 21st and 24th streets.
The Pedestrian Friendly Zone is designated in orange (Photo: UT Parking and Transportation Services)
In the zone, PEVs cannot be ridden. Drivers must walk their wheels through the high-traffic areas, which are designated by new dismount signage around campus.
Dismount signage has been posted around UT’s campus ahead of new mobility rule enforcement (Photo: CBS Austin/Audrey Wong)
Students Mechelle Horne and Ashley Collins rode their electric scooters down to Gregory Gym on campus from their off-campus apartments.
They say the scooters save them time from what would otherwise be a long walk.
“I can imagine if it’s a hot day, say August, we just started school back. And then my class is all the way down here by Jester. That’s dang near 30 minutes. It saves me some time, honestly, especially if I’m late to class, want to pick up something to eat in the morning, and I have an 8 a.m,” said Horne.
Collins says she typically walks her scooter down Speedway, a major pedestrian road through campus, when it gets crowded.
“If I’m riding on Speedway with a bunch of people, I’m obviously walking with my wheels, because I can’t zoom past that and I don’t want to hit anybody,” she said.
But others say walking their wheels is not so simple.
Lu Zhao is a doctoral student who uses a Segway.
“If we do implement that dismount zone across the campus, I will just quit using [the] Segway because it’s almost impossible for me to walk my Segway…” she said. “It does not just follow me automatically.”
Traditional bikes and manually-powered wheeled vehicles will still be allowed to ride through the Pedestrian Friendly Zone, but UT is urging riders to slow down.
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Additionally, electric or motorized vehicles used for disability access and ADA accommodations will still be permitted in the zone.
UT says the new mobility rules are designed “to improve safety and create a more welcoming campus experience in the busiest areas of campus.”
Rising junior Garrett Fuentes says the new rules are understandable, even if inconvenient.
“It really is helpful to get as fast as possible to where I need to go,” he said. “But I can kind of really see why they would implement something like that if foot traffic is too high or people are getting hit by too many bicycles or scooters.”
According to the City of Austin Transportation and Public Works, over 130 fatal or serious injury crashes since 2022 involved bicycles. At least 40 involved e-scooters in that same time frame.
The city also designates Guadalupe St. and San Jacinto Blvd, which border UT’s main campus, as part of the High-Injury Network (HIN) for bicycles and pedestrians. The HIN includes streets that have a relatively high number of serious injury and fatal crashes.
The new rules are set to take effect on the first day of school, Monday, Aug. 24.
For full details, see the UT Parking and Transportation website.