WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.820 Okay, this is Built for Cars, Banned for Bikes and I'm Yashko here. 00:00:05.820 --> 00:00:10.160 Last episode I argued with how people get around a campus and how that is decided by 00:00:10.160 --> 00:00:13.000 what got built long before any of them arrived. 00:00:13.000 --> 00:00:16.040 The problem with an argument like that is very hard to test. 00:00:16.040 --> 00:00:19.720 You can't take one post and put them in two different cities and watch what they do. 00:00:19.720 --> 00:00:23.940 Except a university does that constantly and calls it an exchange year. 00:00:23.940 --> 00:00:29.840 My guest today spent his last year here and came from a city in Italy. 00:00:29.840 --> 00:00:32.600 He's going to introduce himself and where he comes from. 00:00:32.600 --> 00:00:35.480 So if you would like to introduce your scenario, please. 00:00:35.480 --> 00:00:36.820 Yeah, sure. 00:00:36.820 --> 00:00:37.980 My name is Alessandro. 00:00:37.980 --> 00:00:45.680 I come from Venice, Italy and I spent last year as an exchange student at UC San Diego. 00:00:45.680 --> 00:00:47.560 And yeah, that's it for me. 00:00:47.560 --> 00:00:56.760 I studied business econ over there and then right now I'm back home in Venice and I started 00:00:56.760 --> 00:00:57.760 working. 00:00:57.760 --> 00:01:02.520 So if you could please tell the audience like which cities you've been in Italy and like, 00:01:02.520 --> 00:01:08.520 how do you like spend your day at UCSD and how you do you go about in terms of commuting, 00:01:08.520 --> 00:01:09.520 that'd be great. 00:01:09.520 --> 00:01:10.520 Okay, sure. 00:01:10.520 --> 00:01:13.280 So, well, okay. 00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:21.280 I originally come from Venice, but I've been all around Italy and I kind of had the chance 00:01:21.280 --> 00:01:29.280 to experience the various forms of micromobility in different Italian cities where we mostly, 00:01:29.280 --> 00:01:38.040 mostly commute by, I would say by bus and by bike, not rented bikes, like your own bike usually. 00:01:38.040 --> 00:01:47.800 And only, only recently they, the government started like, you know, introducing some rented 00:01:47.800 --> 00:01:48.800 bikes, rented services. 00:01:48.800 --> 00:01:52.800 And, you know, some people started using that. 00:01:52.800 --> 00:02:01.560 I didn't personally use those rented bikes as a micromobility way of commuting until I came 00:02:01.560 --> 00:02:12.320 to the US and at UCSD, I was constantly using spin to mostly to commute to class. 00:02:12.320 --> 00:02:18.360 But not only, not only for, I don't know, I was going out with friends in the city center 00:02:18.360 --> 00:02:20.480 and I was using that. 00:02:20.480 --> 00:02:25.440 I was, I really, really used a lot, a lot, the spin subscript. 00:02:25.440 --> 00:02:31.440 I also had a subscription and yeah, I used it every day, every single day. 00:02:31.440 --> 00:02:38.280 So, did you, the bikes that you mentioned in like Italy, did you like, hold them on a lease 00:02:38.280 --> 00:02:41.840 or did it, was it the same system as spin or like, what are the differences that you observed 00:02:41.840 --> 00:02:42.840 over your past year? 00:02:43.560 --> 00:02:49.000 I would say, no, it's, it's pretty much the same, the same system. 00:02:49.000 --> 00:02:57.240 You, you can have a, you know, a subscription and then a pay as you go type of, of, of bill 00:02:57.240 --> 00:03:00.080 on top of the subscription that you pay. 00:03:00.080 --> 00:03:01.600 So it's, it's really similar. 00:03:01.600 --> 00:03:02.080 Okay. 00:03:02.080 --> 00:03:06.160 So is there like any difference in terms of like infrastructure that you've noticed because 00:03:06.160 --> 00:03:09.600 given the fact that you're in this like unique spot where you spend like three years 00:03:09.600 --> 00:03:14.520 in a university in Italy and then like one year at UCSD, you also happen to have like a lot 00:03:14.520 --> 00:03:16.760 of understanding of the Italian universities for instance. 00:03:16.760 --> 00:03:20.920 or like, I believe you studied in a different country than Italy actually. 00:03:20.920 --> 00:03:26.640 So, um, if you'd like to introduce, uh, like wherever you did your education from that'd be 00:03:26.640 --> 00:03:28.920 very helpful for the viewers. 00:03:28.920 --> 00:03:29.920 Yes, sure. 00:03:29.920 --> 00:03:36.480 Um, so I did my, the first, actually the first two years of my bachelor, um, in, uh, France 00:03:36.480 --> 00:03:37.920 near, near Paris. 00:03:37.920 --> 00:03:46.600 The, the city is a small city called, um, um, and, um, and over there I didn't actually 00:03:46.600 --> 00:03:49.400 see any, any rented bikes. 00:03:49.400 --> 00:03:52.560 Uh, there, I guess there weren't there yet. 00:03:52.560 --> 00:03:53.880 So it's a small city. 00:03:53.880 --> 00:03:59.640 So probably in Paris, there were already those, those kinds of, of bikes of rented services. 00:03:59.640 --> 00:04:07.520 Um, and then in fact spent my, my last and third year of, of my bachelor's degree at UCSD. 00:04:07.520 --> 00:04:12.160 Uh, what course were you pursuing during this, uh, entire three years? 00:04:12.160 --> 00:04:18.280 Yeah, uh, the course was, uh, was economics actually like, uh, uh, political economics. 00:04:18.280 --> 00:04:24.320 And, and, but then, you know, I sort of focused on, on, on business econ just for, for my exchange 00:04:24.320 --> 00:04:24.520 here. 00:04:24.520 --> 00:04:29.200 Have you also like ever like, uh, owned a bike yourself other than the ones that you rented 00:04:29.200 --> 00:04:32.640 in Italy and the ones that you used as spin in US? 00:04:32.640 --> 00:04:40.320 Yes, I, I did own, uh, I did own several bikes, uh, well, both at home and, and during 00:04:40.320 --> 00:04:47.400 my studies there, there in France, I, I actually bought, I guess, two or three, uh, two or three 00:04:47.400 --> 00:04:54.080 bikes because you know, uh, the, the first two got stolen, uh, and, and, uh, I, I owned 00:04:54.080 --> 00:04:58.320 my, my bikes, let's say in, uh, in France that, that for sure. 00:04:58.320 --> 00:05:04.800 Um, instead in the US, I just used, uh, I just used rented bikes, maybe because of the, 00:05:04.800 --> 00:05:06.400 the short period I was there. 00:05:06.400 --> 00:05:09.920 I mean, it's not that short, but you know, like nine, just what? 00:05:10.320 --> 00:05:11.320 Uh, three quarters. 00:05:11.320 --> 00:05:16.400 Um, but no, no, I never bought my own bike in the US. 00:05:16.400 --> 00:05:21.320 Uh, it's funny that you mentioned like, um, theft has like the reason of buying like new 00:05:21.320 --> 00:05:25.800 bikes constantly because like, that was one of the thesis of our projects is like theft 00:05:25.800 --> 00:05:31.480 is like something that is like actively prohibiting like the, um, like the growth of the micro-mobility 00:05:31.480 --> 00:05:35.960 culture in the States that like every single time a bike gets stolen, like more and more 00:05:35.960 --> 00:05:40.920 people like get like, like really, um, uh, feel really like, um, out of this like whole 00:05:40.920 --> 00:05:45.700 situation that like, they don't really want to like, um, get into this like micro-mobility 00:05:45.700 --> 00:05:49.300 culture because they would spend like more eventually than they do like renting. 00:05:49.300 --> 00:05:53.020 And then like, they would also have to like engage with the charging infrastructure. 00:05:53.480 --> 00:05:57.560 So would you, would you say that like, this is the reason that you, that you tend to like 00:05:57.560 --> 00:06:01.120 rent more than own because you've experienced loss yourself? 00:06:01.120 --> 00:06:05.360 Like, is that one of the primary reasons like making you rent more lately or like? 00:06:05.720 --> 00:06:06.900 I guess, I guess, yes. 00:06:06.960 --> 00:06:08.420 And that's, that's a very good point. 00:06:08.420 --> 00:06:15.860 Uh, when I think of, you know, owning my own, uh, let's say my, my electric bike or electric 00:06:15.860 --> 00:06:23.960 scooter, which is a very, very like useful and, um, sort of very comfortable way to, to commute 00:06:23.960 --> 00:06:26.440 around town for, for micro-mobility purposes. 00:06:26.440 --> 00:06:32.740 I'm actually put off from, from doing that by, by the risk of, of theft. 00:06:32.740 --> 00:06:39.500 Like in my place, like here in Italy, it's virtually impossible not to get, uh, your scooter 00:06:39.500 --> 00:06:46.720 or bike stolen, uh, if you don't have a lock and if you don't park it in a very, very safe 00:06:46.720 --> 00:06:55.180 area in certain, you know, uh, times of the day, uh, as for the, as for UCSD, well, I didn't 00:06:55.180 --> 00:07:02.200 actually have the need, but, um, I guess talking to, talking to friends and hearing them, their 00:07:02.200 --> 00:07:07.740 stories, uh, the, the risk of theft was, was, uh, let's say a concrete one. 00:07:08.300 --> 00:07:15.360 And, uh, so I would have probably thought a lot before, uh, purchasing my, my own bike 00:07:15.360 --> 00:07:18.560 or my, my own scooter, um, at UCSD. 00:07:18.560 --> 00:07:25.080 If I, you know, if I've been to, to stay there for, for, uh, I don't know, a few years. 00:07:25.520 --> 00:07:29.480 So economics was like one of the major reasons, like renting for you felt cheaper, like over 00:07:29.480 --> 00:07:32.200 the course of like those nine months over the headache of like ownership. 00:07:32.920 --> 00:07:33.140 Okay. 00:07:33.720 --> 00:07:36.760 Uh, has charging played a role in like this whole scenario? 00:07:36.760 --> 00:07:40.900 Like, have you ever interacted with the charging infrastructure at UCSD or like, if you've 00:07:40.900 --> 00:07:46.220 like used, like your friends, like the unmotorized bikes, so to speak, like there's also like 00:07:46.220 --> 00:07:49.740 infrastructure there to like, uh, fill up gas in your bike tires. 00:07:49.820 --> 00:07:54.720 So have you ever interacted with those at UCSD or like any other like college campus in the 00:07:54.720 --> 00:07:54.960 state? 00:07:55.100 --> 00:07:56.540 And how would you rate your experience? 00:07:56.540 --> 00:08:01.300 And like, um, like if that has affected your like, um, view views towards like ownership 00:08:01.300 --> 00:08:02.920 of a micro-multi device? 00:08:02.920 --> 00:08:09.340 Well, so I, I, I didn't actually have, uh, uh, direct experience with the, the charging 00:08:09.340 --> 00:08:10.960 infrastructure at UCSD. 00:08:11.480 --> 00:08:13.440 Um, I just know of some friends. 00:08:13.440 --> 00:08:18.780 I don't actually know if that's, that's allowed who, who charged their own vehicles at their 00:08:18.780 --> 00:08:20.340 places on campus. 00:08:20.940 --> 00:08:29.680 Uh, I don't know which plug, which plug they used, uh, frankly, um, but I guess it's, uh, 00:08:29.740 --> 00:08:35.500 I guess it's an important, uh, an important factor to consider where you're, where and how, 00:08:35.720 --> 00:08:41.320 and I don't know how expensive, uh, it's going to be to charge your, your vehicle once you already, 00:08:41.320 --> 00:08:44.960 you know, uh, invested the money to purchase it. 00:08:45.480 --> 00:08:54.200 And, uh, I guess, yes, I guess that's it for, for charging like, uh, yeah, for this topic, 00:08:54.260 --> 00:08:54.620 I guess. 00:08:55.100 --> 00:08:59.400 Do you, what do you, what do you think is like the, uh, primary reason that like people charge 00:08:59.400 --> 00:09:03.980 in their like apartments over like some like specific, like dedicated charging spots? 00:09:03.980 --> 00:09:08.260 Like, have you ever seen a dedicated charging spot or like, it's like the lack of those like 00:09:08.260 --> 00:09:11.300 driving people to charge in their like spots or like, what would you think? 00:09:11.320 --> 00:09:15.020 Because I know that there are like, uh, parking spots on campus. 00:09:15.020 --> 00:09:18.780 So like, is there like, are there like no charging spots in those parking locations? 00:09:18.780 --> 00:09:23.800 Or like, what are those only meant for like the traditional bikes with like no motors whatsoever? 00:09:24.140 --> 00:09:26.260 Like, uh, if, if you know anything about that. 00:09:26.260 --> 00:09:26.860 You know what? 00:09:26.960 --> 00:09:34.360 I don't actually recall seeing, uh, one of those charging spots for, for like electric vehicles 00:09:34.360 --> 00:09:35.040 specifically. 00:09:35.560 --> 00:09:37.700 So maybe that's, that's a sign. 00:09:37.880 --> 00:09:45.040 That's an indicator of, uh, sort of, uh, not the absence, but like the rarity or the scarcity 00:09:45.040 --> 00:09:50.560 of, of these places, this, this, you know, this sort of charging infrastructure. 00:09:51.080 --> 00:09:58.460 And to answer your question about why I think like people would, you know, uh, charge their, 00:09:58.560 --> 00:09:59.740 their vehicles at home. 00:10:00.300 --> 00:10:02.440 Um, I guess, yeah, for sure. 00:10:02.520 --> 00:10:08.900 You know, the, the fact of, you know, the comfort and yes, convenience, uh, plays a big, 00:10:09.080 --> 00:10:09.620 big role. 00:10:09.860 --> 00:10:18.560 And, you know, if I were to own my own vehicle, it would be a huge, a huge, you know, pain during, 00:10:18.720 --> 00:10:25.700 during my days, you know, um, taking, taking it upstairs and it's, they're usually very heavy. 00:10:26.240 --> 00:10:30.540 And, uh, so that's, that's probably one of the reasons. 00:10:30.800 --> 00:10:35.360 I mean, looking from like my experience at UCSDI personally, uh, face the situation that 00:10:35.360 --> 00:10:40.320 you're talking about, I used to live in like one of those, like, um, short of like, like 00:10:40.320 --> 00:10:43.460 tall enough buildings that they do require you to take their spin upstairs. 00:10:43.460 --> 00:10:48.200 Like if you like, not, not spin, but like a personally owned, like micro mobility scooter, 00:10:48.200 --> 00:10:53.260 but like, um, but like not tall enough that they, uh, warranted the need for like an elevator. 00:10:53.560 --> 00:10:57.380 So like, I did not have the elevator to like take the scooter upstairs with me easily 00:10:57.380 --> 00:11:01.780 and like charge it in my dorm, but like, uh, there was also no like charging infrastructure 00:11:01.780 --> 00:11:05.960 in those, like all of those, like, um, bike metal locker places where they have like those 00:11:05.960 --> 00:11:09.660 like Q rods coming out of the ground or like in a, in a like dedicated room. 00:11:09.880 --> 00:11:14.500 So like, that's why I was stuck with this like option of like renting a micro mobility device 00:11:14.500 --> 00:11:17.600 rather than like having the option to like actually have the ownership. 00:11:18.040 --> 00:11:21.840 One of my suite mates at the time, like had like a removable battery bike. 00:11:21.980 --> 00:11:23.640 So he was able to get around with it. 00:11:23.680 --> 00:11:27.240 He just like dragged the battery upstairs with him, charged it and then like 00:11:27.240 --> 00:11:28.160 brought it back up. 00:11:28.260 --> 00:11:32.980 So he had like two of the batteries and rotation, but, um, I've personally felt the 00:11:32.980 --> 00:11:37.620 pinch that like there, there's not enough like charging infrastructure nearby for ownership 00:11:37.620 --> 00:11:38.700 to actually make sense. 00:11:38.920 --> 00:11:43.120 But like, um, if you were in one of those buildings, which are like you says you're 00:11:43.120 --> 00:11:47.660 always makes like the ones like, uh, equipped with elevators nowadays, like the hype at all, 00:11:47.780 --> 00:11:50.120 like 15 sorry buildings, for instance. 00:11:50.360 --> 00:11:55.440 So, um, uh, would you like, did you ever like consider like if you were in one of those 00:11:55.440 --> 00:11:56.820 buildings, were you in one of those buildings? 00:11:57.100 --> 00:11:59.420 Like, uh, or did your building not available? 00:12:00.380 --> 00:12:01.120 No, no, no, no. 00:12:01.120 --> 00:12:02.640 Actually I was in I house. 00:12:02.840 --> 00:12:10.180 So no tow buildings, but I know lots of friends that who lived in those sort of flats, uh, like 00:12:10.180 --> 00:12:11.460 yeah, tow buildings. 00:12:11.600 --> 00:12:12.820 Have you ever heard about those? 00:12:12.820 --> 00:12:15.620 Like, um, like scooters that you take on a lease. 00:12:15.620 --> 00:12:21.240 So like on spin, you usually have like, um, like a day long thing or like a pay, pay as 00:12:21.240 --> 00:12:21.680 you go thing. 00:12:21.740 --> 00:12:26.380 But like, there's also scooters that you can like own for like a month on a, on a rent basis 00:12:26.380 --> 00:12:30.240 or like, uh, like you can pay like $50 a month or like $60 a month. 00:12:30.240 --> 00:12:32.580 And then you just like keep it and like use as much as you want. 00:12:32.640 --> 00:12:33.920 Have you ever heard of those? 00:12:34.060 --> 00:12:36.280 I didn't actually know of this option. 00:12:36.540 --> 00:12:36.660 No. 00:12:36.780 --> 00:12:37.000 Okay. 00:12:37.300 --> 00:12:41.540 Would if you, if you knew about that and then like the, because like, then you don't really 00:12:41.540 --> 00:12:45.700 have to pay the upfront amount for like the $600, like $700 scooter. 00:12:46.080 --> 00:12:48.460 Would it make it like more likely for you to like adopt? 00:12:48.580 --> 00:12:53.400 Because like we talked about how like economics of it, like did not make sense for you because 00:12:53.400 --> 00:12:54.740 you were on a short stay there. 00:12:54.960 --> 00:12:59.940 So like, uh, because like now if you talk about like $60 a month, that comes out to be 00:12:59.940 --> 00:13:00.880 like $2 per day. 00:13:00.920 --> 00:13:05.420 But if you take like spin back and forth, you can easily accumulate like $4 to $5 of spend 00:13:05.420 --> 00:13:05.720 a day. 00:13:05.860 --> 00:13:07.980 So like the economics do shift in your behavior. 00:13:07.980 --> 00:13:12.340 So like, would that have made more sense for you and made you adopt micro mobility a lot 00:13:12.340 --> 00:13:13.480 more than you did? 00:13:13.760 --> 00:13:18.820 Like not micro mobility per se, but like it's like persistent, like, because, uh, if you 00:13:18.820 --> 00:13:24.980 do use that, like, um, like leasing option for a month, I also think like the, like the 00:13:24.980 --> 00:13:29.140 usage would have gone up a lot because then you don't really have any incremental cost of 00:13:29.140 --> 00:13:30.180 like using it all the time. 00:13:30.240 --> 00:13:31.620 So like, what are your views on this? 00:13:31.620 --> 00:13:39.280 I would agree on the point that, uh, I would have used that, that leased vehicle way more 00:13:39.280 --> 00:13:43.700 because, uh, uh, you know, I would have been concerned with it, with the incremental 00:13:43.700 --> 00:13:51.680 costs, but, um, I would also, yes, I, I'd also like to, and to do, you know, to, to specify 00:13:51.680 --> 00:13:58.940 that, um, I would have probably been careful, um, about which, which lease, lease option to 00:13:58.940 --> 00:13:59.280 choose. 00:13:59.840 --> 00:14:06.080 Uh, and I would have probably looked into the, the kind of purchasing terms to see if there's 00:14:06.080 --> 00:14:12.900 any, I don't know, insurance costs to pay in case of theft or, uh, yeah, what, what happens 00:14:12.900 --> 00:14:20.520 if my, my vehicle gets stolen and if I'm covered, if I have to pay for that, uh, if, if, if so 00:14:20.520 --> 00:14:25.220 all the, all the purchasing conditions, I would have been very, very careful to choose that. 00:14:25.220 --> 00:14:31.320 And I guess it's, it's sort of, that's a burden as well, you know, sort of decision making 00:14:31.320 --> 00:14:34.500 fatigue, uh, among your, your lease and options. 00:14:35.940 --> 00:14:40.800 Because you get like this, like responsibility up front that like, you have to like manage 00:14:40.800 --> 00:14:42.220 every like thing around it. 00:14:42.260 --> 00:14:45.900 Like if it gets lost, like how do you like manage the extra expense or like, does it get 00:14:45.900 --> 00:14:46.440 charged to you? 00:14:46.540 --> 00:14:48.420 Like the full amount of scooter and like all of that. 00:14:48.720 --> 00:14:51.980 But like, if it's been like your ride-ins and your responsibility ends right there. 00:14:51.980 --> 00:14:52.980 Yeah, exactly. 00:14:52.980 --> 00:14:58.360 And then I, I, I also guess you, um, you know, there, there's lots of exchange students 00:14:58.360 --> 00:15:04.720 on campus and cause, and I, I guess, and also in general international students, you have 00:15:04.720 --> 00:15:11.680 to put, you know, uh, put yourself in the shoes of those students who already pay, um, a lot 00:15:11.680 --> 00:15:18.380 just to be in the U S, uh, um, you know, health insurance, accommodation, uh, all the, you 00:15:18.380 --> 00:15:19.880 know, living expenses, et cetera. 00:15:20.280 --> 00:15:27.620 And, you know, you always try to, to, to cut and optimize costs and, and probably pick 00:15:27.620 --> 00:15:28.820 the safest options. 00:15:29.560 --> 00:15:35.880 So I guess I'm just saying there's a lot of, of, uh, of carefulness and consideration when 00:15:35.880 --> 00:15:41.340 you have to make other purchasing, purchasing options or leasing options. 00:15:41.460 --> 00:15:47.560 So did you ever like, um, happen to use the bus often or like, because there's like a bus 00:15:47.560 --> 00:15:53.340 that takes you around UCSD and did using that like impact your usage of micro mobility and 00:15:53.340 --> 00:16:00.900 like, actually, you know, I, I totally hated taking the bus just because, okay, it's, I, I 00:16:00.900 --> 00:16:04.080 remember it's, it was pretty, pretty frequent. 00:16:04.080 --> 00:16:05.980 So that's a good, that's a bonus. 00:16:06.660 --> 00:16:13.640 Uh, but just, you know, I, I was often in a, in a hurry and, you know, try, try to really 00:16:13.640 --> 00:16:19.400 optimize time from one class to another, or, you know, uh, one commitment to another. 00:16:19.780 --> 00:16:28.800 So there's no comparison, uh, between how, how convenient a scooter or a bike is compared 00:16:28.800 --> 00:16:34.300 to, to a bus, which takes you, yeah, takes you to the stop and then, you know, and also 00:16:34.300 --> 00:16:37.040 like it, it doesn't run every single time. 00:16:37.040 --> 00:16:44.160 And also, I, I guess I, I can't remember the, the hours, uh, that, that buses run on campus, 00:16:44.160 --> 00:16:50.700 but, um, I mean, you know, uh, you, you can always take a spin even at 2am. 00:16:51.020 --> 00:16:52.880 Uh, so yeah. 00:16:53.200 --> 00:16:53.500 Yeah. 00:16:53.940 --> 00:16:54.180 Yeah. 00:16:54.180 --> 00:16:58.700 So like, uh, I feel like with the, like all of those like community resources where you 00:16:58.700 --> 00:17:03.640 have like buses and like metros and all of that, I feel like the major drawback with those, 00:17:03.640 --> 00:17:09.260 um, is like the time constraint, as you said, like, um, like that of the UCSD like bus schedule, 00:17:09.260 --> 00:17:14.600 like it runs from 6am to like 10pm on weekdays and then it does not run on weekends at all. 00:17:14.820 --> 00:17:19.680 So like, um, so like, I, I believe like that is also like another major reason that like 00:17:19.680 --> 00:17:25.000 people need more micro mobility adoption because those like public transports like do help. 00:17:25.080 --> 00:17:29.480 And I think like they're genuinely like the best option, like for, uh, in terms of like 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:34.580 climate conservation, like if you have like electric buses on campus, but, but I definitely 00:17:34.580 --> 00:17:38.540 feel like for those like edge cases where you have to travel one mile and like the bus 00:17:38.540 --> 00:17:41.520 doesn't go there, like micro mobility is the solution to that. 00:17:41.520 --> 00:17:45.160 And like, if you just use a car instead, you would have, you would like pollute the environment 00:17:45.160 --> 00:17:48.200 much more and like have like a lot more to like take on. 00:17:48.340 --> 00:17:51.560 Like, like if you rent an account, it would be like a hell of a lot more expensive. 00:17:51.560 --> 00:17:55.980 So like, uh, even in like, uh, even in terms of like finances, I feel like micro mobility 00:17:55.980 --> 00:17:58.160 makes sense in those scenarios, but yeah. 00:17:59.100 --> 00:18:04.700 Um, so you mentioned that you owned a personal vehicle, like the personal micro mobility device 00:18:04.700 --> 00:18:05.220 in Italy. 00:18:05.880 --> 00:18:11.000 Um, so did you ever like, uh, was there ever like a test licensing or like, did you ever 00:18:11.000 --> 00:18:12.560 like buy insurance for it? 00:18:12.620 --> 00:18:14.700 Did you ever like register it anywhere? 00:18:14.700 --> 00:18:18.040 Or did you just like, uh, get it from like a local shop and be done with it? 00:18:18.040 --> 00:18:19.420 Like what was the experience? 00:18:20.040 --> 00:18:21.960 It's like the last option you mentioned. 00:18:22.080 --> 00:18:29.800 I just got it from, from a local shop, no insurance, no, no license, licensing costs or whatever. 00:18:29.920 --> 00:18:34.140 Um, uh, and I, I just, I just use it. 00:18:34.140 --> 00:18:39.100 If it gets stolen, it's, it's my problem and no, nobody else's. 00:18:39.740 --> 00:18:47.360 Um, and that's why I have a pretty, pretty, uh, robust lock to protect it. 00:18:47.360 --> 00:18:57.260 And I, you know, I mostly use it, uh, on, on the weekends to, to go to the gym and my gym 00:18:57.260 --> 00:19:00.220 is in a safe, in a safe neighborhood. 00:19:00.840 --> 00:19:08.180 And especially at the times that I go to the gym, it's, it's way safer than at night. 00:19:08.180 --> 00:19:16.480 So I have no problems, uh, about that, but I would, I would, I would carefully consider, 00:19:16.480 --> 00:19:23.640 uh, you know, leaving my bike, uh, at night in the center of, uh, of, of my city, which 00:19:23.640 --> 00:19:29.040 is by the way, just to, to be precise here, uh, I said, I'm from Venice. 00:19:29.160 --> 00:19:34.800 Well, there's the, it's male in Venice because, um, in Venice, you can't ride bikes. 00:19:34.800 --> 00:19:38.320 It's just walking and, and water bus and that's it. 00:19:38.320 --> 00:19:41.540 Uh, so I'm from male in Venice. 00:19:41.700 --> 00:19:47.160 There are cars, there are roads, uh, walking, et cetera, just, just to be, uh, clear and coherent 00:19:47.160 --> 00:19:47.520 here. 00:19:47.880 --> 00:19:52.340 And that was, that was useful for like the audience of like base and like. 00:19:52.480 --> 00:19:55.260 Yeah, especially because, you know, exactly. 00:19:55.440 --> 00:19:58.920 I imagine people, maybe they, they visit Venice and say. 00:19:59.160 --> 00:20:00.820 No, you can't ride bikes there. 00:20:00.920 --> 00:20:02.780 What, what is even talking about? 00:20:03.260 --> 00:20:04.220 Uh, that's why. 00:20:04.440 --> 00:20:07.980 So were there like any rules about how you can drive and that like people actually follow 00:20:07.980 --> 00:20:08.200 them? 00:20:08.260 --> 00:20:10.020 Was there any enforcement? 00:20:10.420 --> 00:20:11.720 Did anyone ever stop you? 00:20:11.800 --> 00:20:17.940 Like, this is like both in like, um, like us and then like, um, in Italy, like it doesn't 00:20:17.940 --> 00:20:22.340 really matter if you're like on a, I believe there's like no like difference between the 00:20:22.340 --> 00:20:27.720 rules for like electric bikes and like it rules for like, um, rules for like unmotorized 00:20:27.720 --> 00:20:31.240 bikes or like, are there any that you're aware of or like, how are they enforced? 00:20:31.460 --> 00:20:32.540 Like what's the situation? 00:20:33.080 --> 00:20:41.580 Like, uh, well for, uh, I guess for electric bikes and scooters, um, I guess there are speed 00:20:41.580 --> 00:20:45.860 limits, which I'm not aware of, like the, the exact speed limits. 00:20:46.080 --> 00:20:53.940 Uh, I don't have one and I rarely use like, uh, here like electric vehicles for micromobility. 00:20:53.940 --> 00:21:01.760 So I wouldn't know, um, as far as, uh, as far as like, you know, normal, regular bikes, 00:21:01.760 --> 00:21:09.580 uh, uh, are concerned, um, there are, uh, there are, uh, there are, there are very few enforcements 00:21:09.580 --> 00:21:17.200 like, uh, you know, people are supposed to, uh, wear helmets or they're supposed to, you 00:21:17.200 --> 00:21:23.540 know, uh, just like, don't, don't go over a certain, a certain speed, but nobody really 00:21:23.540 --> 00:21:27.960 respects those, those, those norms, those, those enforcements. 00:21:28.200 --> 00:21:32.820 I, I, I admit, you know, uh, I, I'm guilty of, of the first one. 00:21:32.960 --> 00:21:33.940 I never wear a helmet. 00:21:34.500 --> 00:21:36.040 Nobody ever does it in Italy. 00:21:36.260 --> 00:21:43.500 And it's very, very common that more than one people, uh, you know, rides on a bike, like, 00:21:43.580 --> 00:21:47.720 you know, the, the rider and the one, um, the one behind him. 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:48.920 So behind them. 00:21:49.440 --> 00:21:50.280 So, yeah. 00:21:50.680 --> 00:21:56.020 And I also saw lots of people on spins, you know, like a double, double riding. 00:21:56.520 --> 00:22:02.360 Uh, so I guess it's, uh, it's pretty, pretty common that, that lots of enforcements are not 00:22:02.360 --> 00:22:05.520 respected in, in, in practice. 00:22:06.100 --> 00:22:10.940 So the enforcement is like a universal problem, like based on like the two scenarios that we 00:22:10.940 --> 00:22:11.620 talked about then. 00:22:11.680 --> 00:22:18.080 I, I guess, I guess, uh, you know, did you ever come across like any signage that asked 00:22:18.080 --> 00:22:21.240 you to like slow down or like, I don't know, like wear helmets or. 00:22:21.480 --> 00:22:24.600 Yes, yes, yes, I did. 00:22:24.600 --> 00:22:30.680 Um, on campus, especially, I remember, um, you know, uh, it's like you, you should wear 00:22:30.680 --> 00:22:37.480 a helmet that, that for sure you shouldn't ride in like more than, more than one person. 00:22:38.440 --> 00:22:45.540 Um, that's, that's, yes, that's the two that, that I recall from my time at UCSD. 00:22:45.900 --> 00:22:51.220 So you mentioned that like people like double ride and that makes it probably like unsafe 00:22:51.220 --> 00:22:52.980 for like the pedestrians involved in this. 00:22:53.620 --> 00:22:58.780 Um, because like, I, I feel like there's like a, there's more of a chance that like the person 00:22:58.780 --> 00:23:00.100 crashes while doing that. 00:23:00.420 --> 00:23:04.280 I have personally seen like people on like skateboards, which is like another micro mobility 00:23:04.280 --> 00:23:10.120 device, um, like carrying someone or like, um, riding, like double riding a skateboard. 00:23:10.360 --> 00:23:15.440 And I personally think like those lead to like more crashes than like, um, even like not having 00:23:15.440 --> 00:23:17.020 enough experience of riding. 00:23:17.020 --> 00:23:19.380 So like, what are your views on that? 00:23:19.460 --> 00:23:22.720 Is that like something that like people do because like, they don't really have like enough 00:23:22.720 --> 00:23:26.020 budget to like, uh, take, um, separate ones. 00:23:26.140 --> 00:23:26.960 Is it like fun? 00:23:27.160 --> 00:23:31.580 Is it like something that people enjoy with like their partners or is it just like something 00:23:31.580 --> 00:23:35.380 that people do even with friends or like, what's the ground reality? 00:23:35.740 --> 00:23:44.340 Like, um, well, um, I guess there are both, you know, extrinsic factors like, you know, that, 00:23:44.340 --> 00:23:47.260 I don't know, weather conditions that the floor is wet. 00:23:47.700 --> 00:23:52.700 Um, and it happened to me once, you know, that the floor was wet and I lost control of 00:23:52.700 --> 00:24:00.080 the vehicle and I slipped on the floor, uh, or other extrinsic factors might be, um, I don't 00:24:00.080 --> 00:24:06.060 know, you know, uh, someone just, just, you know, uh, because sort of like runs you over 00:24:06.060 --> 00:24:10.040 bumps, bumps against you and you have no control over that. 00:24:10.600 --> 00:24:18.160 Uh, but I guess that it's very important that, um, it's very important to sort of like to, 00:24:18.160 --> 00:24:24.400 to be an experienced driver, which is sort of paradoxical because you're supposed to gain 00:24:24.400 --> 00:24:26.460 experience while driving. 00:24:26.460 --> 00:24:32.620 Uh, but, um, it's like, it's like learning from your mistakes basically as opposed to like 00:24:32.620 --> 00:24:34.820 If there's a chance, exactly. 00:24:34.820 --> 00:24:40.740 If there's room for mistakes because you, you know, accidents can, I, I, I don't know if fatal, 00:24:40.740 --> 00:24:43.180 but they can be very, very, very severe. 00:24:43.880 --> 00:24:49.260 Um, it's important to be, to be good, at least good at driving. 00:24:49.920 --> 00:24:58.960 Um, and, um, I, I also, I also think that one of, one of the reasons, uh, why, why people 00:24:58.960 --> 00:25:06.180 often transgress rules is because yes, they're, they just take things lightly. 00:25:06.180 --> 00:25:12.220 And I, I, again, I admit being guilty of that, you know, uh, I don't know. 00:25:12.220 --> 00:25:18.020 I was with my, with my girlfriend over there and, you know, we always double ride. 00:25:18.440 --> 00:25:22.200 Um, and just, just didn't care. 00:25:22.360 --> 00:25:24.640 Nothing ever happened, uh, to us. 00:25:24.640 --> 00:25:30.440 And it was just a very, very convenient way of, um, of moving from one place to another. 00:25:30.680 --> 00:25:39.620 I don't know, uh, other, other observations from, from the field, I guess, uh, yeah, just 00:25:39.620 --> 00:25:43.780 people often, often like to, to, to ride together. 00:25:43.780 --> 00:25:50.260 I, I saw like, you know, the, um, I saw lots of times with, with friends, uh, using the, 00:25:50.260 --> 00:25:52.600 the shared ride on spin. 00:25:52.600 --> 00:25:58.260 So that's, I guess, an enjoyable experience and like just to something to do, to do together. 00:25:58.260 --> 00:26:05.040 And you can go maybe like faster than usual with your friends or just, uh, having a sort 00:26:05.040 --> 00:26:06.240 of like race. 00:26:06.520 --> 00:26:11.020 Uh, I guess this, this is just, just some thoughts. 00:26:11.680 --> 00:26:17.400 But like the shared ride is actually like, um, like separate, uh, spins that you can choose. 00:26:17.580 --> 00:26:20.360 And like every single person like rides like one. 00:26:20.540 --> 00:26:21.780 Yes, yes, exactly that. 00:26:22.180 --> 00:26:22.840 Uh, yeah. 00:26:22.880 --> 00:26:24.280 I just wanted to like make it clear. 00:26:24.280 --> 00:26:27.600 And like, uh, it's not the same thing as like two people riding one scooter. 00:26:28.060 --> 00:26:32.400 No, as which, which is what like people tend to do, but like there is another like hidden 00:26:32.400 --> 00:26:36.280 danger and like shared riding that, like, if like, as you mentioned, like people like 00:26:36.280 --> 00:26:37.780 try to like compete with each other. 00:26:37.940 --> 00:26:43.100 So like, um, like, yeah, like that might like make them like take like risky turns or like 00:26:43.100 --> 00:26:48.900 not slow down when there's like a decline because they want to like go faster to like beat, um, 00:26:49.020 --> 00:26:50.500 whoever it is that they're challenging. 00:26:50.500 --> 00:26:54.540 So like, I believe like that might like make it unsafe for everyone involved. 00:26:55.500 --> 00:26:55.640 Yeah. 00:26:55.920 --> 00:27:02.020 So, um, so it's mostly about like romance and like people find it like romantic to like 00:27:02.020 --> 00:27:02.940 a double ride then. 00:27:03.060 --> 00:27:06.040 Is it, that's the good reason why people like double ride? 00:27:06.420 --> 00:27:13.200 I mean, romance, uh, it's just like, I guess, you know, romance is, is, is a factor there, 00:27:13.200 --> 00:27:18.180 I guess, uh, because, you know, if you have to, let's say, I don't know, go to the beach 00:27:18.180 --> 00:27:24.760 or like go, go watch the sunset in some, some beautiful place, you might use the spin to 00:27:24.760 --> 00:27:25.700 and double ride. 00:27:26.060 --> 00:27:26.600 That's it. 00:27:26.940 --> 00:27:31.140 So do you think like there should be like, um, micro mobility devices that like accommodate 00:27:31.140 --> 00:27:31.600 two people? 00:27:31.600 --> 00:27:36.480 Because I have seen like bicycles that can like accommodate like two people and like make 00:27:36.480 --> 00:27:41.400 it like, like maybe potentially like safer for everyone involved because like, then you 00:27:41.400 --> 00:27:45.180 would have like proper space for like two people to even stand because like, if you ride 00:27:45.180 --> 00:27:50.420 on like a one person micro mobility device, like it might be unsafe, like compared to 00:27:50.420 --> 00:27:54.820 the two person one, because like you would actually have space to like stand for both of you guys 00:27:54.820 --> 00:27:58.980 and like maybe like some sort of like safety device, if it's like a bike, you can also have 00:27:58.980 --> 00:28:02.020 like, uh, I don't know, like proper seats and all of that. 00:28:02.020 --> 00:28:07.100 So like, um, would like the, would you think like that concept would like be helpful? 00:28:07.520 --> 00:28:13.760 I, I, I think it's a very good point and I actually haven't, uh, haven't ever thought 00:28:13.760 --> 00:28:14.280 about it. 00:28:14.520 --> 00:28:22.940 I guess if, uh, if like if some, you know, um, vehicles that are like specifically designed 00:28:22.940 --> 00:28:29.300 for, for more than one person, like for two people were, were introduced, I would probably 00:28:29.300 --> 00:28:35.200 choose that, uh, when, when double riding, you know, uh, it's, it's safer. 00:28:35.200 --> 00:28:41.200 It's probably, you know, more, more comfortable to, to ride, um, to ride together. 00:28:41.200 --> 00:28:50.080 And now that you let me think there, I, I remember when using the, the, the spin scooters, uh, 00:28:50.080 --> 00:28:56.020 at UCSD, I remember there were like mostly, yeah, two, two types, two types of scooters, 00:28:56.020 --> 00:29:04.780 like, um, so I think two models and one was, uh, and they, they slightly differed in, in color. 00:29:04.780 --> 00:29:08.600 There, there were two, two tones of two different tones of orange. 00:29:08.980 --> 00:29:16.400 And I remember there were, um, like the, the darker orange ones were sort of more robust 00:29:16.400 --> 00:29:20.380 and, um, sort of more, uh, more stable. 00:29:20.900 --> 00:29:26.220 Um, and that's why I, I often, uh, I often pick them over, over the other, when I had 00:29:26.220 --> 00:29:28.580 the, the chance, when there was availability. 00:29:29.280 --> 00:29:35.660 So, yeah, I've always seen like, um, I think other than like just the color, like, um, I 00:29:35.660 --> 00:29:40.060 saw like three different types of like, uh, handles and like, there were also like these 00:29:40.060 --> 00:29:43.020 like standing, like brakes or whatever you want to call them, like stands. 00:29:43.160 --> 00:29:46.380 They were like stands that like lifted up the entire, like front of the scooter and they 00:29:46.380 --> 00:29:50.820 were like stands that like had like a side, like took, um, like kickstand. 00:29:50.900 --> 00:29:55.320 And I believe like the, those are like, uh, like, like, like all of those, like different 00:29:55.320 --> 00:29:57.400 models are like different, um, experiences. 00:29:57.840 --> 00:30:02.780 Some of them, like, just like some of them had this like, um, thing where they like just 00:30:02.780 --> 00:30:05.700 stopped abruptly sometimes and like, or like deaccelerated. 00:30:06.020 --> 00:30:10.600 So I believe like that also like contributed to me, like getting this like unexpected, like 00:30:10.600 --> 00:30:15.960 joke sometimes where I was just like, um, even though like, because when I'm controlling 00:30:15.960 --> 00:30:20.840 something with my own hands, I I'm like sort of like, um, predicting the next move or 00:30:20.840 --> 00:30:24.640 like the next, uh, like where I'm going to be in like one second from now. 00:30:24.820 --> 00:30:30.740 But if that, but if it like speeds up or like, um, like stops, like all of a sudden, 00:30:30.740 --> 00:30:33.360 like it, I might get into an accident, like because of that. 00:30:33.360 --> 00:30:38.080 And instead of like, uh, it being a safety feature, because like, let's say if I like 00:30:38.080 --> 00:30:42.020 I'm crossing a car and like it stops all of a sudden, like the car might actually like 00:30:42.020 --> 00:30:47.300 crash onto me instead of like that being as a, like, uh, that being the safety feature, 00:30:47.380 --> 00:30:50.040 like something that like saves me in that scenario. 00:30:50.040 --> 00:30:55.740 So, um, I don't know if you've ever experienced that, but like that has been my experience personally. 00:30:55.740 --> 00:30:59.860 Like sometimes like when you go to the library work, they just like stop at this like sudden 00:30:59.860 --> 00:31:02.080 joke instead of like a gentle deacceleration. 00:31:02.360 --> 00:31:07.600 And I think that also like sort of makes things unsafe for like the pedestrians and like even 00:31:07.600 --> 00:31:09.580 the micro mobility rider himself. 00:31:09.580 --> 00:31:14.900 You know, I, I couldn't agree more and I, I absolutely feel the same about it. 00:31:14.900 --> 00:31:21.080 Uh, I, I guess, uh, I'm, I'm not sure about this, but, um, I guess there are, you know, 00:31:21.080 --> 00:31:27.980 certain, certain areas that are sort of like, uh, mapped on, onto the sort of like spin map. 00:31:27.980 --> 00:31:28.480 I don't know. 00:31:28.480 --> 00:31:34.020 And there, um, over those, those, in those areas, there are certain speed limits. 00:31:34.020 --> 00:31:35.700 Library walk is one of them. 00:31:36.060 --> 00:31:43.880 And, um, and I actually think it's, it's, it's pretty dangerous when you're, you know, 00:31:44.280 --> 00:31:46.420 riding, riding faster. 00:31:46.420 --> 00:31:52.780 And then you immediately like, uh, you, you get, you get abruptly stopped by, by the vehicle 00:31:52.780 --> 00:31:55.800 or, uh, and you slow down abruptly. 00:31:55.800 --> 00:32:02.220 And, but even more dangerous is the opposite when you're going slower and then you don't 00:32:02.220 --> 00:32:08.200 know when you're going to accelerate, because you're, you're constantly, you know, um, pushing 00:32:08.200 --> 00:32:10.400 the, the, the envelope, the, the accelerator. 00:32:11.040 --> 00:32:19.120 And, uh, and then you, you, you abruptly accelerate and that, you know, that was about 00:32:19.120 --> 00:32:25.680 to, to make me, make me fall several times, actually, like, I guess almost all the times 00:32:25.680 --> 00:32:26.860 that that happened. 00:32:27.300 --> 00:32:34.280 So yeah, a safety measure that turns out to be, uh, potentially unsafe, I would say. 00:32:34.740 --> 00:32:40.840 Actually, um, now that you mentioned that, I think UCSD has banned micro mobility devices, 00:32:40.840 --> 00:32:45.760 or like any like motor vehicles on the library to walk from like eight to five every single 00:32:45.760 --> 00:32:46.260 weekday. 00:32:46.760 --> 00:32:48.100 Were you like aware of that? 00:32:48.160 --> 00:32:51.120 Or like, um, is that a rule that you've never heard of? 00:32:51.320 --> 00:32:54.580 No, I actually wasn't aware of that. 00:32:55.120 --> 00:33:03.480 And, uh, I can say I trust transgressed this, this rule, um, lots of times, but for, for lack 00:33:03.480 --> 00:33:10.820 of awareness, I, I, I don't know where, where is written, uh, just out of curiosity. 00:33:11.360 --> 00:33:17.820 I'll let you know about the resources after the podcast, but like, um, but like, if you 00:33:17.820 --> 00:33:20.680 were aware of this, like, would you still like do it anyway? 00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:23.540 Like, like being completely honest with yourself? 00:33:23.540 --> 00:33:30.480 Like, I would say out of, um, probably just out of necessity, I guess. 00:33:30.620 --> 00:33:36.380 Uh, but otherwise I, you know, I, I, I, I, I can still remember like different ways to, 00:33:36.480 --> 00:33:37.620 to avoid library walks. 00:33:37.620 --> 00:33:43.540 So I would have probably taken those, even though they're a bit longer and more convoluted. 00:33:43.780 --> 00:33:48.180 So like, like you would like take it when you're, when you have like ample amount of 00:33:48.180 --> 00:33:52.600 time, like, uh, like just like reach classes, but like in emergencies, you would just like 00:33:52.600 --> 00:33:53.720 take the shortest path anyway. 00:33:53.940 --> 00:33:54.780 I, I guess, yes. 00:33:54.880 --> 00:33:59.540 In emergency, but also, you know, being an exchange student, I was constantly, I was constantly 00:33:59.540 --> 00:34:06.300 sort of like, uh, uh, um, scared of, of breaking rules because you know, uh, the, the, I guess 00:34:06.300 --> 00:34:10.700 they're, they're stricter in, in the U S than they are in, in Europe. 00:34:10.980 --> 00:34:12.200 That's just a perception. 00:34:12.200 --> 00:34:17.480 So I would have been, been, I would have used the, the other routes, I guess. 00:34:17.680 --> 00:34:17.960 Okay. 00:34:18.140 --> 00:34:18.260 Yeah. 00:34:18.480 --> 00:34:23.580 Um, so do you think that there's like need, like, I don't know if you've noticed, but like 00:34:23.580 --> 00:34:27.060 on library walk, they do not have like any, like bike lanes necessarily. 00:34:27.060 --> 00:34:30.560 Like you can still like operate a bike, but do you have to like sort of like maneuver 00:34:30.560 --> 00:34:34.220 around like pedestrians and like, there's no like clear marked lanes. 00:34:34.700 --> 00:34:36.800 So like, what do you, what do you think about that? 00:34:36.920 --> 00:34:39.720 I would say that a bike lane would be much needed over there. 00:34:40.460 --> 00:34:40.860 Yeah. 00:34:41.240 --> 00:34:47.200 And it would be, would be very, very useful just to, you know, to avoid all, to avoid 00:34:47.200 --> 00:34:52.200 all the people when it, when it's crowded and, um, to prevent accidents from happening. 00:34:52.260 --> 00:34:52.880 So, yeah. 00:34:52.880 --> 00:34:55.180 So it would like solve like both of the problems. 00:34:55.180 --> 00:35:00.880 So like one stone, because like you would sort of have this like shortest path scenario, 00:35:00.880 --> 00:35:04.300 like, like where, where like you're short on time and you can just like take the shortest 00:35:04.300 --> 00:35:07.120 path because there's like proper bike lane infrastructure to begin with. 00:35:07.320 --> 00:35:12.480 And then like, you also don't have like actively make this conscious like decision of like 00:35:12.480 --> 00:35:16.960 picking, picking like a suboptimal path when you're like short on time and like think 00:35:16.960 --> 00:35:18.640 about like the implications of that. 00:35:18.640 --> 00:35:23.560 And like, if you ever like not follow the rules, would that like reduce the anxiety around 00:35:23.560 --> 00:35:28.540 it or like make the entire experience like more, um, like easy, easy? 00:35:29.200 --> 00:35:29.360 Yeah. 00:35:29.600 --> 00:35:31.240 Uh, I do think, I do think so. 00:35:31.420 --> 00:35:32.180 I do think so. 00:35:32.820 --> 00:35:41.420 Uh, I guess bike lane on, on library walk and, you know, the adjacent areas would be, uh, 00:35:41.420 --> 00:35:46.820 would make it much easier and, and, and safer to, to ride over there. 00:35:47.160 --> 00:35:47.420 Yeah. 00:35:48.020 --> 00:35:53.540 So, um, moving on to your previous experience and like, um, like when you were like coming 00:35:53.540 --> 00:35:57.420 over here, like what your perceptions were about the place and like how they actually turned 00:35:57.420 --> 00:35:59.640 out to be, I wanted to ask some questions about that. 00:35:59.860 --> 00:36:03.820 So like, um, let's say like you were like the new student over there. 00:36:03.820 --> 00:36:08.800 And like, what did you assume like before like landing in that flight, like the States, 00:36:09.240 --> 00:36:13.140 like what, like, what did you assume about like getting around the campus and what turned 00:36:13.140 --> 00:36:13.900 out to be like true? 00:36:14.000 --> 00:36:17.540 Like what was the difference between those two realities, the one that you have, like, 00:36:17.840 --> 00:36:21.900 like the reality and like the, like the perceived reality that you had in your head, like before 00:36:21.900 --> 00:36:25.340 landing in the States and like living that like university life. 00:36:25.340 --> 00:36:37.240 Uh, I would say my expectations were, uh, were met in the sense that, um, I, I expected, um, 00:36:37.540 --> 00:36:43.980 that, you know, there, there, there would be, uh, like a micro mobility vehicles, like electric 00:36:43.980 --> 00:36:46.720 scooters or bikes to move around campus. 00:36:47.280 --> 00:36:54.060 And I also expected there would be a bus and I expected all those, those, you know, means of, 00:36:54.060 --> 00:37:01.320 of commuting around campus to be, uh, actually to, yeah, to be, to be convenient and to be 00:37:01.320 --> 00:37:08.360 efficient, uh, just because, you know, I, I, I got informed, um, about UCSD and there's, 00:37:08.420 --> 00:37:14.980 there's plenty of resources about every single, um, area of, of student lives on, on the website. 00:37:14.980 --> 00:37:22.280 So that was very, that was very useful to, uh, to craft, uh, and like to, to make myself an 00:37:22.280 --> 00:37:24.300 idea of what I, I'd encounter. 00:37:25.040 --> 00:37:34.240 Um, but maybe if I, if I, uh, if I hadn't been informed, I would have expected, um, I would 00:37:34.240 --> 00:37:41.320 have expected probably like less availability of, of, uh, like, uh, of, of, of these micro 00:37:41.320 --> 00:37:48.480 mobility solutions for students, just because, you know, um, I guess as Europeans would think 00:37:48.480 --> 00:37:55.920 of, of, uh, America has, as, you know, very, very big places, very long distances that can 00:37:55.920 --> 00:38:00.760 be covered only by, um, by owned vehicles, mostly by car. 00:38:01.340 --> 00:38:08.060 And that actually didn't turn out to be true in the case of, of, of campus, you know, UCSD. 00:38:08.480 --> 00:38:12.820 So like campus, like a, like sort of like a mini city by itself where you can like. 00:38:13.400 --> 00:38:14.200 Yeah, that's true. 00:38:14.400 --> 00:38:14.840 That's true. 00:38:14.960 --> 00:38:19.060 Where you can like actually have like more micro mobility, like than like the city itself. 00:38:20.020 --> 00:38:24.080 Um, did you ever like try getting around the city using micro mobility, like outside of 00:38:24.080 --> 00:38:24.520 the campus? 00:38:24.980 --> 00:38:26.980 Uh, yes, yes, I did. 00:38:26.980 --> 00:38:33.460 Uh, but I would say in order to get to, you know, uh, other, other places of, of, of San 00:38:33.460 --> 00:38:39.880 Diego that are not La Jolla, it's, you know, it's just, just the running, riding the trolley 00:38:39.880 --> 00:38:42.640 isn't the best, the best solution. 00:38:42.640 --> 00:38:45.640 Like it doesn't, it doesn't get you everywhere. 00:38:45.940 --> 00:38:50.680 It gets you to the, you know, to most places and it's pretty convenient for those places. 00:38:50.680 --> 00:38:58.660 But I, um, often had, you know, the, the often had like, you know, I don't know, commitments 00:38:58.660 --> 00:39:05.340 or, or events planned at places that were not, um, easily reachable through, through the 00:39:05.340 --> 00:39:05.760 trolley. 00:39:06.240 --> 00:39:11.820 So, so, um, like as with like the rules surrounding all of this, like, did anyone tell you about 00:39:11.820 --> 00:39:12.340 those rules? 00:39:12.340 --> 00:39:17.000 Like, like, I know that you, you read a lot about like the infrastructure itself, like on 00:39:17.000 --> 00:39:21.740 the UCSC related basis, but like, were there like any like rules mentioned or like any, 00:39:21.740 --> 00:39:26.500 like no go zones or like any sort of like any other rules or like, did anyone else like 00:39:26.500 --> 00:39:29.840 inform you about like how you could get around campus, maybe in like some sort of orientation 00:39:29.840 --> 00:39:35.180 or any other like orientation email or like how, how, how were those like communications 00:39:35.180 --> 00:39:39.420 and are you, were you just like handed over like a link and like, you can just like go 00:39:39.420 --> 00:39:44.020 and find your way around campus or like whatever way or like, how was that experience? 00:39:44.160 --> 00:39:44.820 Yeah. 00:39:44.980 --> 00:39:45.180 Yeah. 00:39:45.340 --> 00:39:51.020 Uh, you know, like all that, that information about commuting, commuting around campus was 00:39:51.020 --> 00:39:58.060 given to us from the, um, I guess the international student office, uh, at UCSD. 00:39:58.360 --> 00:40:02.020 So that was super, super useful. 00:40:02.920 --> 00:40:11.600 Um, and yes, otherwise I, I, I, I probably would have only been able to, to, to read the website, 00:40:11.600 --> 00:40:18.700 but yeah, we, we as sort of guides for transportation on campus given to us from the international 00:40:18.700 --> 00:40:21.220 student office, like department. 00:40:21.500 --> 00:40:21.600 Yeah. 00:40:21.720 --> 00:40:22.000 Okay. 00:40:22.380 --> 00:40:25.940 Were you like informed about them during your orientation as well? 00:40:26.040 --> 00:40:28.360 Was there an orientation to begin with? 00:40:28.420 --> 00:40:31.480 Cause I'm not aware of the procedure of elect transfers or exchange students. 00:40:32.000 --> 00:40:36.180 Um, oh, well, let's say that time passed. 00:40:36.180 --> 00:40:43.860 So, but no, no, no formal, formal orientation, uh, beyond the material, the like orientation 00:40:43.860 --> 00:40:45.200 material we received. 00:40:45.400 --> 00:40:48.220 No, no, no, no, like in-person orientation. 00:40:48.720 --> 00:40:48.980 No. 00:40:49.860 --> 00:40:50.220 Okay. 00:40:50.540 --> 00:40:50.800 Okay. 00:40:51.280 --> 00:40:53.520 That is usually the case for like first year students. 00:40:53.520 --> 00:40:57.280 So I just wanted to like know what the process is, but yeah. 00:40:57.600 --> 00:41:01.760 Um, is there anything that you found like confusing when like moving around campus? 00:41:01.760 --> 00:41:07.720 Like anything that you thought was like really confusing or like, um, like me personally, 00:41:07.720 --> 00:41:12.320 for, for instance, like I really found like that, like all of those, like Amazon lockers, 00:41:12.320 --> 00:41:18.160 like Amazon is like a big player and like, um, e-commerce and like all of that, that we, um, 00:41:18.620 --> 00:41:20.400 like readily used. 00:41:20.440 --> 00:41:24.360 So like, I honestly thought that like getting to all of those, like Amazon lockers was a 00:41:24.360 --> 00:41:28.640 hassle on like, for instance, like since we're like talking about like micro mobility, like 00:41:28.640 --> 00:41:33.480 I definitely thought like that those like, uh, spin stations weren't like strategically 00:41:33.480 --> 00:41:37.600 located to the, uh, near the location that you would want to like access the most. 00:41:37.700 --> 00:41:42.140 Like for instance, like there's a restaurant named like OVD, Ocean View Terrace Pizza. 00:41:42.480 --> 00:41:46.480 Like, like it's for like, it's mostly famous for like pizzas and like Italian stuff. 00:41:46.640 --> 00:41:52.460 But I, whenever I took the spin to that area, I did not really have any like proper, um, 00:41:52.560 --> 00:41:54.540 spin stations where I could park the scooter at. 00:41:54.640 --> 00:41:59.200 And I had to leave those in like awkward positions and then just like close the ride through the 00:41:59.200 --> 00:42:03.680 app or like contact the support team because there was like no strategically like PlayStation. 00:42:04.080 --> 00:42:08.400 I know that there are like a lot of stations along that way, but like, I still feel like 00:42:08.400 --> 00:42:12.680 restaurants are some places where you genuinely like go again and again. 00:42:13.000 --> 00:42:37.240 And I feel like having those stations like close to those like, uh, public places, it's just like very, like a sensible solution to do this like entire problem of like spin scooters, like lying around, especially since I've like talked to some like pedestrians and like this was a major complaint from them that they find like spin scooters, like facing downwards or like just like, uh, across the street, like, and that like blocks the pedestrian pathway and puts them in the harm's way. 00:42:37.240 --> 00:42:41.400 By like forcing them to, like, like forcing them to take the road, for instance, like, and like 00:42:41.400 --> 00:42:45.780 get out of the pedestrian zone, like, and then go on the road and then like go up to the pedestrian 00:42:45.780 --> 00:42:46.360 zone again. 00:42:46.540 --> 00:42:52.560 So like, have you, have you ever faced any such thing or like, uh, what's been your experience? 00:42:52.940 --> 00:43:09.900 I mean, I, I, I, I, well, OVT is a great example because, uh, there's, uh, there's no, like there's, I mean, yeah, there are several like, you know, parking spots near OVT, but not one actually, um, actually there. 00:43:10.060 --> 00:43:28.160 So I guess there should be more in general, just, just, you know, to, to keep the, to keep the roads, uh, like, uh, tidy and without, without scooters, um, put, put every, like, you know, put in a kind of like not, not orderly manner. 00:43:28.160 --> 00:43:51.300 Um, and also if there were more, um, more dedicated parking spots, I guess the, there, like the scooters would be parked, uh, parked better because there, there wouldn't be so much, you know, like, um, so, so many, many scooters parked in just, you know, just few parking spots. 00:43:51.560 --> 00:43:57.640 So I, I guess things would be more, yeah, just tidier and more organized. 00:43:57.640 --> 00:44:04.920 Yeah, um, I don't know if you've noticed, but like, there's like two different types of like, uh, like bike lane infrastructure on campus. 00:44:05.240 --> 00:44:17.140 There's ones that are like, uh, where the bike lanes are actually like on the opposite sides, like, um, it's like the bike lanes are, um, like the road lanes for the, like the lanes for the cars are like sandwiched between the bike lanes. 00:44:17.300 --> 00:44:23.320 So the bike lanes are like on either side, like between the car lanes and the pedestrian lanes, like the sidewalk. 00:44:23.880 --> 00:44:31.800 And then there's like lanes that is like next to the ridge walk, which is like the, like the long strip that like runs along Rimac and like other places on campus. 00:44:31.960 --> 00:44:45.800 So like over there you have like, um, both of the bike, like going front and like back, like next to each other and like separated, uh, from the pedestrian walkway via like, like, I don't know, like, uh, divider or like any sort of like plantation. 00:44:45.800 --> 00:44:55.740 So like, uh, uh, what, what has your experience been with like, uh, either of those, like, and do you think like one is superior to the other or like, which one supports the need of the students better? 00:44:56.180 --> 00:44:57.300 Like, okay, sure. 00:44:58.080 --> 00:44:58.600 Hmm. 00:44:58.780 --> 00:44:59.140 Okay. 00:44:59.240 --> 00:45:05.100 Which I, and I guess, and the question is which one I'd, I'd, I'd prefer or. 00:45:05.220 --> 00:45:05.320 Yeah. 00:45:05.320 --> 00:45:09.040 Which one, which, which one is like safer, like, which one do you think should be. 00:45:09.280 --> 00:45:30.880 I guess, I guess the, the second one, probably, I guess the second one, uh, just, just because, you know, like you, uh, and also I can't remember how, how was the, the separator between the two lanes and then in the case, like, uh, being able to, to go both ways with, was it like, uh. 00:45:30.880 --> 00:45:34.080 There was no separator, which is like a white, white line on the road. 00:45:34.400 --> 00:45:39.120 Like there was a separator between the, both of those lanes and the, uh, like the pedestrian bridge walk. 00:45:39.280 --> 00:45:47.260 So there was like a divider, like a plantation that was like dividing those, but like between those two, like, um, back and forth lanes, there was like no divider. 00:45:47.420 --> 00:45:49.840 There was just like two green lanes next to each other. 00:45:50.580 --> 00:45:51.020 Yeah. 00:45:51.160 --> 00:46:07.800 Then, then, yes, I, I definitely, definitely think that the, the, the second option one with, you know, bike lanes on, on either side of the road, uh, are, is, is probably the safest just because you, yeah, you, you don't, yeah. 00:46:07.800 --> 00:46:14.040 Um, you, you, you don't risk, um, having, like people going, going against you with, with their vehicles. 00:46:14.040 --> 00:46:16.620 It's just like, it's just one direction. 00:46:17.180 --> 00:46:17.620 Okay. 00:46:18.100 --> 00:46:32.660 But have you ever considered like how, um, if you're choosing that like path where you have like, um, where you have those like bike lane infrastructures, like next to the car lane infrastructure, like the car sort of like just like takes up the bike space as well at times. 00:46:32.660 --> 00:46:35.400 And you're like forced onto the pedestrian walkway. 00:46:35.400 --> 00:46:37.340 Like, has it ever been a problem for you? 00:46:37.480 --> 00:46:39.860 Um, I guess, I guess, yeah. 00:46:40.100 --> 00:46:57.660 Um, I actually recall, um, I, you know, like in several, on several occasions, I just, um, I just used maybe for, for, uh, short distances, the, the, like the, the pedestrian walk, uh, right. 00:46:57.660 --> 00:47:12.660 So, um, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, and especially, you know, like the, the thing here is the, the, the short width of, of, of the bike lanes, um, that, that I guess is the main problem. 00:47:12.660 --> 00:47:34.140 Um, and that's why cars risk just like running over you or like, just being very, very close to you riding. 00:47:34.140 --> 00:47:47.200 So now that you've like considered this scenario, like, would you think that the other option was actually safer where you had the micro mobility lanes, like separated from everything else and like right next to each other, like back and forth? 00:47:47.840 --> 00:47:49.020 Actually, yes, yes. 00:47:49.240 --> 00:48:07.500 After, after consideration, yes, it's probably best to, I mean, it's probably better to, uh, have a sort of like, you know, bike, bike accident or just like, uh, then, or a bike collision, let's say, then, then a car collision with a car bike collision, I guess. 00:48:07.680 --> 00:48:22.660 Yeah, I think like people when like the same as the case with like authorities, like when they make decisions, like they might consider one argument and like totally disregard the other and like, um, make a decision that like sort of like favors one thing over the other. 00:48:22.760 --> 00:48:34.500 So like, yeah, that is a dilemma like that people usually face and like, yeah, in terms of like limited context and like limited like experience themselves because like the authorities usually do not use micro mobility infrastructure on campus. 00:48:34.500 --> 00:48:41.000 Like it's usually like the students themselves and like, they don't really have that much of a say in like the infrastructure being built per se. 00:48:41.860 --> 00:48:43.080 So, yeah. 00:48:43.180 --> 00:48:45.280 Do you think like bridging that gap would be like better? 00:48:45.440 --> 00:48:47.440 Of course, we'd have like a feedback cycle. 00:48:48.000 --> 00:48:48.260 I guess. 00:48:48.360 --> 00:48:48.560 Yeah. 00:48:48.760 --> 00:48:59.480 I guess the feedback loop is, is a sensible, is a sensible thing or like sensible process to incorporate in policymaking decisions. 00:48:59.820 --> 00:49:15.040 And not only in this case, like in the micro mobility solutions and infrastructure case, but yeah, just like, um, people or users feedback is, is essential always to, to improve the quality. 00:49:15.580 --> 00:49:26.360 Um, moving on to the, like the last section of this, like podcast, like, um, I just wanted to ask you like a couple of like quick questions about like what you would do if you were in that situation or like what you would change basically. 00:49:26.860 --> 00:49:35.360 Um, so let's say if you, you had like one year at like UCSD, but if you had like four instead, like, would you have solved something about it? 00:49:35.680 --> 00:49:50.220 Would you have like, if you had the position, like if you were, if you were in a position of power or like, like student government, for instance, or like any other like, uh, position where you can like actually change the, like the fundamentals of micro mobility on campus. 00:49:50.380 --> 00:49:53.440 Like what would you change and like, how do you think like that is justified? 00:49:54.460 --> 00:49:56.840 Well, wait, that, that's tough question. 00:49:56.840 --> 00:50:15.800 Um, but I guess I would, well, uh, of course, after, after budget considerations, I would probably, uh, I would probably introduce more, uh, like more bike lanes in specific spots. 00:50:15.800 --> 00:50:38.280 Like, uh, uh, for example, like, you know, like library walk, um, and I justified with, you know, uh, the things we, we said, um, with, you know, the, the place being too crowded and actually, you know, vehicles like electric vehicles running anyway, like in, in, through, through library walk. 00:50:38.280 --> 00:50:49.000 So, uh, I guess, uh, I guess a bike lane would be, would be much needed and justified, uh, for, for safety purposes and also convenience, uh, reasons. 00:50:50.040 --> 00:51:03.060 Uh, then I would probably, I don't, I don't know if it's, it's, if it's already that, that, that frequent light, but I would probably increase the frequency of, of, uh, bus rides. 00:51:03.720 --> 00:51:20.960 Um, and, uh, probably increase the, like the, the hours, the running hours, um, even though I, I, I, I guess, you know, like just the drivers must get paid and maybe paid even more for, for awkward times. 00:51:20.960 --> 00:51:34.480 Like, you know, like, you know, 1, 2 a.m. Uh, so, and I, I justified with, um, with just like, you know, the, the, the, the need, need to, to, like, to move around campus. 00:51:35.600 --> 00:51:42.740 Um, then other things, uh, I, I wouldn't actually know. That's, that's pretty much it. 00:51:42.740 --> 00:52:01.660 It's okay. It's okay. We can, like, uh, move over that. Um, so, um, given the fact that you've, like, spent, like, time in, like, both places, like, is there anything that you genuinely, like, find that's, like, missing from, like, the American infrastructure compared to, like, what you've, whatever you experienced in, like, uh, what, what country was it? Like, France? I, I believe? 00:52:01.800 --> 00:52:03.080 France. Yeah, France. 00:52:03.080 --> 00:52:23.360 Yeah. So, like, what, what is something that you found that was, like, missing and, like, present over there, but, like, missing over here, given that, like, Europe is actually, like, big on, like, um, posts and, like, like, public infrastructure and, like, I, I believe it's, uh, I don't know the micromobility situation, but I believe it's, like, it must be better than, like, what we have in America. 00:52:23.560 --> 00:52:48.600 Well, uh, for, just, like, you know, for the micromobility, I wouldn't, I wouldn't agree that much. I think the situation is, looks, looks pretty good. Uh, I don't know if in America overall, but, like, and, uh, at least in, like, in San Diego, uh, it looks good in terms of, like, just micromobility, um, like, very short, short distances through, through, you know, rented bikes and, and scooters. 00:52:49.240 --> 00:53:09.580 Um, I think it's, it's better than, than Italy or France. Uh, but, uh, I guess, yeah, public transportation is, um, the public transportation infrastructure is, it's just, um, better, there are more options, uh, and there are more routes as well. 00:53:09.580 --> 00:53:21.260 Like, I, I don't know, for example, uh, I remember using the trolley, there were only, I guess, three, three, um, lines, like three, three line colors. 00:53:21.900 --> 00:53:35.420 Um, whereas, like, I guess here in Europe in general, you, you would find way more routes, even to, um, like leading to less, less, uh, common places. 00:53:35.660 --> 00:53:42.100 So, I would say more option and more availability and that's, uh, yeah, that's a constraining fact. 00:53:42.260 --> 00:53:52.520 And, and even outside, outside of, uh, of the town, like you, there, yeah, there, there are way, way more routes to, to lots of places. 00:53:52.740 --> 00:54:05.160 So, do you think, like, having a better, like, improved, like, um, like the trolley network or, like, public mobility network or, like, the bus network basically, like, would also improve the, uh, like, the micromobility usage? 00:54:05.240 --> 00:54:17.080 Because, like, in a way, if you think about it, like, um, like, you can go to, like, the major spots using these, uh, like, public infrastructure options and then, like, do the last mile connectivity with, like, a micromobility device. 00:54:17.080 --> 00:54:24.840 For instance, like, you can come to UCSD, uh, on a bus and take your bike with you and then, like, use the bike to, like, get to your specific spot on campus. 00:54:25.120 --> 00:54:31.680 So, do you think, like, uh, improving the public infrastructure, infrastructure overall, like, would also help boost the micromobility adoption? 00:54:32.120 --> 00:54:33.840 I would, I would, I would think so. 00:54:34.140 --> 00:54:36.020 I would, I would, I would say so. 00:54:36.220 --> 00:54:40.600 And, uh, I would say that, like, you know, the one reinforces the other, right? 00:54:41.040 --> 00:54:47.340 Or, I mean, like, yeah, just public transportation usage, uh, reinforces micromobility usage. 00:54:47.760 --> 00:54:53.560 So, um, coming to the pedestrian bits, like, I, I believe you must have been a pedestrian at some point as well, right? 00:54:53.600 --> 00:54:55.300 Like, during your stay at campus. 00:54:55.300 --> 00:55:04.380 So, um, like, seeing at it from the other way around, like, do you think, like, this growing micromobility adoption, like, is actually, like, a threat to the pedestrians? 00:55:04.380 --> 00:55:17.220 Because, like, now you have, like, scooters entering onto people because, like, I personally had, like, two accidents with, like, like, when I stopped using scooters for, like, a couple of months, I, like, like, those, um, spin riders actually ran into me. 00:55:17.480 --> 00:55:26.000 So, like, uh, do you think it's actually making the campus, like, unsafe for the pedestrians, which is, like, actually the majority as compared to the micromobility vehicles? 00:55:26.580 --> 00:55:30.180 Yeah, I, I, I guess it's a, it's a real concern. 00:55:30.420 --> 00:55:40.340 It's a real safety concern, um, to always have, you know, like, just micromobility vehicles running very close to, to pedestrians. 00:55:40.940 --> 00:55:57.260 And as a pedestrian, I, you know, I, I actually often, or, you know, like, just sometimes at least I felt unsafe around, around scooters or, or, or, or, or bikes in general. 00:55:57.980 --> 00:56:14.760 Um, so, uh, let's say the, the, the further I, I was, as a pedestrian, the, the further I was from, from any type of, of other vehicle, whether a car or, or, yeah, or scooters or bikes, uh, the safer I felt. 00:56:15.480 --> 00:56:15.920 Yeah. 00:56:16.380 --> 00:56:22.760 So, like, do you think, like, um, people should, like, ban these micromobility devices, like, near, near pedestrians or, like? 00:56:22.760 --> 00:56:33.740 Well, um, I, I guess, yeah, I, I guess near, near pedestrians, they should be banned. 00:56:34.280 --> 00:56:35.460 They should be banned. 00:56:35.600 --> 00:56:40.140 Do you think there should be, like, criminal charges for, like, um, riding a scooter in, like, pedestrian zones? 00:56:40.480 --> 00:56:49.180 Or, like, um, if you hit a person with a, uh, like, let's say, scooter or a bike, like, should there be, like, criminal proceedings or, like, would that help the situation? 00:56:49.180 --> 00:57:05.040 I, I'd say it's a sensible, uh, it's a sensible thing to enforce, um, especially because, you know, uh, damage can be, can be, can be pretty severe and in general violations, you know, violations can lead to, to severe accidents. 00:57:05.040 --> 00:57:09.360 So, I would say fines are, are, are totally, totally justified. 00:57:09.760 --> 00:57:12.900 So, like, fines more than, like, prison time or something like that? 00:57:13.220 --> 00:57:16.940 Yeah, just, just fines, just fines, no, no prison time. 00:57:17.800 --> 00:57:25.880 Because I believe, like, if you, like, have, like, very strict enforcement, like, that would do the opposite and, like, drive down the micro-mobility adoption because, like, now. 00:57:26.200 --> 00:57:26.980 Oh, yeah, definitely. 00:57:27.220 --> 00:57:34.780 You're scared to, like, actually, right, because what if something happens and, like, no, all of a sudden, like, their entire life is, like, ripped upside down in a way, so, yeah. 00:57:34.880 --> 00:57:40.920 Yeah, you know, your last wish as an international student is to, to find yourself in an American prison, I guess. 00:57:41.680 --> 00:57:42.620 Yeah, so, yeah. 00:57:42.780 --> 00:57:46.280 I believe, like, they deport you more than they put you in the prison, but, okay, yeah. 00:57:46.520 --> 00:57:47.920 Yeah, it's probably true as well. 00:57:48.160 --> 00:57:50.840 Yeah, and then you cannot continue your studies, so, yeah. 00:57:51.900 --> 00:57:52.260 Exactly. 00:57:52.500 --> 00:58:02.580 Have you ever thought about, like, accessibility reasons, like, like, how it's a danger to, like, accessibility because, like, a blind person cannot hear a scooter coming towards them? 00:58:02.720 --> 00:58:11.240 And, like, like, a pedestrian might, like, avoid them, but, like, if someone comes on, like, if someone is on, like, a wheelchair, like, a micro-mobility person could do a lot of harm to them. 00:58:11.400 --> 00:58:14.200 And they wouldn't be able to, like, see it or, like, whatever. 00:58:14.920 --> 00:58:25.240 I, I actually, I've never thought about, about, about in this, this terms, like, under the, you know, accessibility perspective. 00:58:26.920 --> 00:58:43.380 As far as I remember, something that really, really struck me when I was in the U.S., when I was at UCSD, was, like, the presence of, you know, like, kind of, like, accessibility lanes, which is not even a concept where I come from. 00:58:44.000 --> 00:58:50.280 So, and I know they're, like, separate and they're far from, from bike lanes. 00:58:50.620 --> 00:58:53.640 Like, they're, like, a whole, whole separate track. 00:58:54.220 --> 00:59:14.340 So, um, I guess I've never thought about accessibility concerns, but, uh, I also think that, um, like, there are already some, some sort of, like, uh, solutions, like, separate solutions for, you know, bike lanes and, and, uh, accessibility lanes in the U.S. 00:59:14.760 --> 00:59:24.200 Um, I don't know that, that I don't know how, how, like, uh, how widespread is the, the presence of accessibility. 00:59:24.220 --> 00:59:51.380 So, you know, uh, um, I don't know, I'm in a wheelchair and, uh, I have to go to, to, to, to some place that it's not covered by accessibility lanes that, and in that case, yes, I would, I would, I would, I'd be concerned, uh, because, you know, uh, there's a, there's a lot of, like, uh, risky factors, um, represented by, by other vehicles potentially, you know, running in sort of like into me. 00:59:51.380 --> 01:00:21.240 So, um, let's say if you're, like, at this, in this, like, hypothetical scenario, like, and you're in a scooter, and then, like, um, and, like, a blind person comes, and, like, they'll just, like, sort of walk into the micro-immobility lane, so, like, technically, it is their fault, but, like, they're also, like, not, like, uh, they're, since they're, like, blind, so, like, they couldn't really see anything, and, like, you crash into them, so, like, uh, like, if you're, let's say if you're not, like, actually a pedestrian, but, like, um, like, you're the campus personnel, 01:00:21.380 --> 01:00:27.120 like, who do you think would be, like, responsible in such a case, and, like, how should, like, campus handle those, like, things, and, like, how? 01:00:27.800 --> 01:00:32.240 Well, uh, you mean, like, only in the case that a vehicle hits a pedestrian, right? 01:00:32.540 --> 01:00:35.820 Yeah, but, like, the pedestrian is, like, blind, so, like, they couldn't really see anything. 01:00:35.920 --> 01:00:36.880 Yeah, yeah, yeah, sure. 01:00:37.540 --> 01:00:39.880 Um, well, uh. 01:00:39.880 --> 01:00:43.720 Do you think it's still, like, the motorcyclist's fault, or, like, do you think it's, like, the. 01:00:44.600 --> 01:00:49.860 Yeah, I, I, I, I would still think it's the, the, it's rider's fault. 01:00:50.120 --> 01:00:50.360 Okay. 01:00:50.720 --> 01:01:06.700 Uh, yeah, yeah, uh, you know, like, uh, uh, however unpredictable, uh, could be, like, I don't know, the, could, could have been the, the, the blind person's moves, uh, or the movement, you know, it's, it's a rider's fault, I would say. 01:01:07.160 --> 01:01:18.180 Yeah, so, whatever, like, the reason might be, like, you're still responsible for, like, stopping when, whenever something comes into your way, like, even if you're in the wrong place, like, yeah. 01:01:18.720 --> 01:01:36.920 Yeah, um, yeah, um, I would agree with that, like, I definitely feel, like, the rider would be at the, like, yeah, because the other person is, is at the mercy of the mobility user, so, like, you are the one with the bigger car, like, the same way if you, like, drive into, like, the car lane, like, the car is responsible to stop for you, 01:01:36.920 --> 01:01:49.200 and not just, like, hit into you, so, yeah, um, do you ever also feel, like, scared of, like, cars when using a spin, like, uh, if the car would, like, hit you, they have, like, 80 airbags, you do not have any safety device, so, like, you're, like. 01:01:49.520 --> 01:02:15.800 Yeah, yeah, yeah, I guess, um, I wasn't, I wasn't, I wasn't really, you know, uh, scared, uh, but just, just to, I, I, I always made sure, maybe unconsciously, to take the, the right precautions, and just to, like, to stay at a, like, uh, you know, uh, at a safe distance, even if that meant going sometimes on the, on the sidewalks, you know, the pedestrian sidewalks. 01:02:15.800 --> 01:02:33.940 Okay, um, yeah, that makes sense, um, so, anyways, like, wrapping up this entire thing, like, um, is there anything that you think we haven't, like, touched upon, or I should have, like, asked you, but I did not, like, uh, anything that you would want to, like, leave your remarks on, or, like, improve, or, like, anything that you would like to say? 01:02:34.800 --> 01:02:53.120 I'd, I'd probably say, uh, just, like, you know, the, um, the use of non, like, non-rented, non-rented bikes, just, like, you know, like, um, I would say, and non, non-electric, non-rented bikes, so, your own bike, and that is non-electric. 01:02:53.900 --> 01:03:08.640 Um, I would say that, uh, it's probably, it's probably a topic to, um, to tackle when, uh, you know, when it comes to, to micro-ability on campus, just because it's just, like, like, walking. 01:03:08.840 --> 01:03:26.420 It's just a very healthy way to, to commute, and I guess it's, uh, you know, if you're for sure that your bike is not, is not getting stolen, or, like, it's very unlikely that it gets stolen, uh, and you, you can also exercise while commuting. 01:03:26.420 --> 01:03:37.680 So, I guess it's, uh, it's just, you know, a topic that I would have probably, you know, maybe talked, talked about more, but I, I, I think this interview was very, very comprehensive. 01:03:38.260 --> 01:03:55.880 Um, one thing that I actually wanted to bring up, like, now, now that we're, like, wrapping it up, is, like, um, like, when you walk, like, when you use, like, these, like, unmotorized, like, vehicles to, um, get to your class, like, do you also feel like they just, like, um, they just sort of, like, make you tired when you're, like, going there? 01:03:55.880 --> 01:04:07.680 So, like, um, like, they actually play, like, a negative effect on, like, like, like, because it's unmotorized, you do not have, like, any assistance, and by the time you go to the class, like, you're already, like, tired and, like, not really doing the class anymore. 01:04:07.680 --> 01:04:16.780 Because, like, you might be sleepy, you might be, like, exhausted because of that bike run, and, like, UCC does have, like, steep lines in some place, so that might also, like, play a role. 01:04:17.280 --> 01:04:19.420 So, like, how do you, like, tackle that? 01:04:19.780 --> 01:04:22.420 Like, how do you think, like, that affects the entire thing? 01:04:23.080 --> 01:04:32.720 Yeah, I, I, I do think it's, you know, um, it's probably, um, it, it probably depends on, on the route that you have to take to get to the class. 01:04:33.360 --> 01:04:51.240 And now that you let me think about it, um, I, I remember some very steep hills, um, uh, on, on campus that I would have much, much, much preferred to, and I actually, you know, I actually did use motorized vehicles, like, electric vehicles to, to run those. 01:04:51.640 --> 01:04:57.680 So, I, I don't know if that makes you so exhausted that you can't follow a class. 01:04:57.840 --> 01:04:58.640 I don't think so. 01:04:58.720 --> 01:05:05.700 I actually think that, you know, as, as students, we, we just, like, we, we probably sit a lot. 01:05:06.060 --> 01:05:12.880 And it's just a very good way to, you know, release the stress and get the, your heart, heart rate up during the day. 01:05:13.300 --> 01:05:13.360 Yeah. 01:05:13.480 --> 01:05:23.060 Oh, but yes, it's probably not the best option when at night you're tired and after, maybe after class and you have to run the steep hill. 01:05:23.440 --> 01:05:24.420 Yeah, that makes sense. 01:05:24.480 --> 01:05:30.300 I personally did feel that way, but, um, I, I agree with, like, that, yeah, that might not be the case for, like, everyone. 01:05:30.480 --> 01:05:35.720 So, um, moving on to the last question, I just wanted to ask if there's, like, any, if there's, like, any resources. 01:05:36.060 --> 01:05:44.800 Um, that you came across that you found, found super helpful when, like, traversing across the campus or, like, moving from the campus to the city. 01:05:44.800 --> 01:05:51.840 Like, for instance, there's an app called, like, Pronto, where you get, like, free, um, bus passes, sort of, for UCSD students. 01:05:52.060 --> 01:05:59.500 And you can use that to, um, use any of the Prontos, like, like, any of the, like, MTSs, buses, or, like, the trolley, free. 01:06:00.140 --> 01:06:05.180 So, um, if there's, like, any resources that you come across or, like, anything that you would like to, like, um, 01:06:05.240 --> 01:06:08.080 that would help people out, like, whoever's listening to this. 01:06:08.620 --> 01:06:20.840 Well, other than Pronto, which is a very valuable resource, um, I guess, well, I guess maybe just trying one of those, like, 01:06:21.000 --> 01:06:37.000 I actually did it, like, in one of those promo, you know, promo code websites, like Cooper or something, uh, just to get promo codes for, for writing spins, um, that actually turned out to be, to be pretty useful. 01:06:37.560 --> 01:06:45.180 Yeah, they, I, I mean, not, not always, but, yeah, just, like, you know, a few times, yeah, they, they saved me, they saved me a couple bucks. 01:06:45.900 --> 01:06:46.880 So, I was actually happy. 01:06:47.360 --> 01:06:54.940 Uh, it's, it's Cooper, Cooper, it's like, it's a Chrome extension that allows you to, uh, like, um, yeah. 01:06:54.940 --> 01:06:56.020 What was the name of the site again? 01:06:56.020 --> 01:06:58.240 C-O-U-B-R-T. 01:06:58.400 --> 01:06:58.600 Okay. 01:06:58.940 --> 01:07:05.060 Yeah, that was, um, is there anything else that you would like to share, like, any, like, other resource? 01:07:05.740 --> 01:07:11.720 Uh, actually, no, I, I wouldn't, I wouldn't have anything to, to add more. 01:07:12.280 --> 01:07:12.720 Sorry. 01:07:12.880 --> 01:07:25.760 Um, I think, I think, like, for, like, commuting across from the campus of the city, I think for, um, like, these trolley systems, you could also just use Google Maps because there's an option to, like, tap the trolley button and it'll decide the path for you. 01:07:25.900 --> 01:07:32.440 And you can use, like, the, uh, Toronto's app to, like, just, like, take free rides if you're, like, a community member of, like, UCSG. 01:07:33.160 --> 01:07:41.040 Um, but, yeah, um, and there's also, I believe there's also, like, another app for, like, MTS where you can see the entire network of all of these trolleys and, like, buses. 01:07:41.540 --> 01:07:43.160 So, I believe that could be helpful. 01:07:43.160 --> 01:07:49.140 And then, like, on campus, I believe there's an app, um, that you can use to spot the bus's live location. 01:07:49.900 --> 01:07:53.360 Uh, I think it's called Transcript or Transcript or something. 01:07:53.500 --> 01:07:56.720 I know, I actually, something like that, yeah. 01:07:57.240 --> 01:08:00.260 So, um, you can use these resources, I guess. 01:08:00.540 --> 01:08:02.220 Um, yeah. 01:08:02.360 --> 01:08:04.640 So, yeah, that was it for today's episode. 01:08:05.020 --> 01:08:08.920 Um, so, thank you, everyone, for tuning in and listening to this. 01:08:09.140 --> 01:08:13.420 That was Alejandro, who spent his entire last year as an exchange student in UCSD. 01:08:14.260 --> 01:08:19.840 Um, so, we just want to, like, leave it at this and come back for the next episode with another guest. 01:08:20.400 --> 01:08:21.420 Um, thank you so much. 01:08:21.840 --> 01:08:21.920 Yeah. 01:08:22.040 --> 01:08:22.680 Thank you, Yash. 01:08:22.980 --> 01:08:23.380 Thank you. 01:08:23.640 --> 01:08:24.060 Thank you. 01:08:24.060 --> 01:08:24.460 Thank you. 01:08:24.760 --> 01:08:24.900 Yeah. 01:08:25.320 --> 01:08:26.100 Thanks for listening. 01:08:26.260 --> 01:08:26.360 Yeah.