How a Loading Zone Can Facilitate Personal Mobility Services and Promote Safety

This case study describes a 45-day 'curb access' pilot conducted in spring 2018 by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and the Austin Transportation Department (ATD). The project repurposed four metered parking spaces into a contiguous loading zone at the corner of West 6th Street and Nueces Street in Austin to evaluate if such zones could improve safety and facilitate the use of ride-hailing services like Uber, Lyft, and RideAustin, thereby encouraging a shift away from personal vehicle ownership.

• The pilot demonstrated that repurposing metered parking into a loading zone successfully shifted curb usage from long-term parking to short-term passenger loading. Before the designation, most curb sessions lasted over 30 minutes; after the change, the majority of sessions were less than five minutes.
• Video observations indicated that the loading zone improved safety by providing a designated area for boardings and exits, contrasting with the 'chaotic environment' on the opposite side of the street where passengers had to walk into the middle of travel lanes to access ride-hail vehicles.
• Low user awareness hindered the pilot's effectiveness, with 76% of end-of-demonstration survey respondents stating they were unaware the passenger zone existed. Contributing factors included limited nighttime signage visibility and the covering of a nearby pay station, which may have suggested the area was off-limits.
• The study identified a discrepancy between daytime and evening usage: ride-hail demand peaked in the evening, while daytime use was dominated by 'misuse' such as restaurant staff parking and commercial deliveries. RMI suggests 'Evening loading zones' as a potential solution to balance mobility needs with city parking revenue.

APA

RMI (2018). How a Loading Zone Can Facilitate Personal Mobility Services and Promote Safety. https://rmi.org/resources/personal-mobility-and-safety/

Chicago

RMI. How a Loading Zone Can Facilitate Personal Mobility Services and Promote Safety. 2018. https://rmi.org/resources/personal-mobility-and-safety/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=How a Loading Zone Can Facilitate Personal Mobility Services and Promote Safety |date=1 October 2018 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/personal-mobility-and-safety/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2018how, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{How a Loading Zone Can Facilitate Personal Mobility Services and Promote Safety}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2018}, month = oct, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/personal-mobility-and-safety/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }