An image from the Bird company website: The company wants to deploy rental scooters like this in Albany.
A company named Bird wants to deploy shared electric scooters in Albany, the city council learned Wednesday. One question: Why don’t they just go ahead and do it without getting city officials involved?
The question was neither asked nor answered during the presentation at the virtual meeting on Zoom.
In Monmouth, the city council there voted last July to “allow” Bird e-scooters to operate in the city. According to the Polk County Itemizer-Observer, the council passed a local law regulating the use of “stand-up electric vehicles” and setting up license fees for scooter businesses. “No one would be allowed to provide e-scooters as a business in Monmouth without being licensed,” the paper reported.
Albany, apparently in contrast to Monmouth, has no business licenses. It does not license taxis or bus companies, or the rentals of cars or bicycles. And people already operate scooters, some driven by motors, on city streets. So why would a company like Bird need or want the council’s permission to get started?
Bird is based in Santa Monica, Calif., and runs fleets of shared scooters in 230 American cities and many foreign countries. People can use the electric scooters for short trips around town.
Customers of Bird use an app on their smart phones to locate a scooter when they need one, pay the fee via credit card, and park the thing for somebody else to pick up at the end of their ride.
The scooters are subject to the same traffic rules as bicycles.
A company rep named Mike Butler talked to the council. He said Bird would start in Albany with 50 e-scooters and hire a local operator who would run the operation, looking after things like storing, maintaining, charging, retrieving, and distributing the scooters. If demand warrants, Bird would deploy as many as 100 scooters.
If I heard him right, Butler said the average ride costs users $6-7, and discounts are available. The company website says users must be at least 18 and agree to a long list of rules and conditions. If they leave a scooter without properly ending the ride on the app, they will continue to be charged.
City Manager Peter Troedsson introduced Butler to the council. As Troedsson described this kind of “micro-mobility,” it’s a way to enable people to use public buses if bus stops are too far away to reach on foot.
Mayor Alex Johnson II said the council would take Bird’s plan “under advisement.” The next step, if any, was left in the air. But again, unless I’m missing something, this Bird could start scooting around Albany tomorrow without anybody’s official OK. (hh)
No, this type of business does not need government’s “approval.” But the city no doubt smells a revenue opportunity so it will probably impose a disguised tax (called a fee).
Some reasonable regulation should be considered to avoid the scooters from becoming a swarm of locusts that feast on sidewalks, parks, and handicap access ramps.
My suggestion: Restrict them to bike lanes. Let them compete with bikers like Hasso for the public right-of-way.
And like the Segway of 20 years ago, when the scooters are no longer cool, toss them into the landfill.
I am obsessed with Hasso’s obsession about an entity’s ability to do business without alerting local government officialdom, almost as though doing so is wrong. Why would anyone care whether a business thinks it prudent to explore a relationship with the local governing body? Isn’t that the company’s business?
“But again, unless I’m missing something, this Bird could start scooting around Albany tomorrow without anybody’s official OK”
While that may be true, common sense and common courtesy says a new business would do exactly what they have done. And as was mentioned, the MOU has already been looked over by the City attorney.,,
As an e scooter user I am cautiously supportive of this. I have a medical condition that prevents me from driving a car so I use an e-scooter to commute to and from work. I Ride in the bike lane and/ or on the right side of the roadway and try to follow all traffic laws.
I do have some concerns that need to be talked about.
1. Scooter users should be required to wear helmets and follow traffic laws.
2. What about bike paths such as the Dave Clark path? signs at the bike paths say “no motorized vehicles”. Are e-scooters motorized? Should they be allowed to use bike paths? I have used the paths on my scooter, and that is the safest way to travel across town avoiding traffic.
3. I’m sure the Bird scooters are designed not to exceed 18mph. but some new e-scooters are designed to go upwards of 30mph. Technically by Oregon State Law those type scooters need to be licensed (and insured?) like a traditional scooter (like a Vespa).
4.Because I do use a scooter I’ve looked, and there are no city ordinances regulating or mentioning e-scooters. Perhaps the city needs to adopt rules from other jurisdictions. https://www.micromobility.com/bolt/portland
5. The obvious place to have the scooter fleet parked is at the Albany Station where users of Amtrak or Albany Transit can rent a scooter to get to their final destination. Should Bird lease a location at the Albany Station for this fleet?
Overall I think this service is needed and justified, I’m concerned that some bad actors are going to force the city to “ban” e-scooter use, and thereby take away my ability to commute with my private scooter.
Not sure who these “bad actors” may be, but I didn’t hear any negative concerns at the meeting…
“5. The obvious place to have the scooter fleet parked is at the Albany Station where users of Amtrak or Albany Transit can rent a scooter to get to their final destination. Should Bird lease a location at the Albany Station for this fleet?”
This only works if they return the scooter in a timely manner. Thus the City council will approve because it would only benefit downtown shoppers. Another underhanded method of trying to prove CARA works. Manipulate the playing field.
As a user of bicycle lanes, I don’t need to have to keep an eye on what’s zooming up on me from behind while paying attention to the other drivers attempting to kill me.
I don’t see any problem having these zipping all over town.
YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_88-A0hRJxg
How to Properly Ride Popular Bird Scooters
Mark Avery
Where’s Forrest Gump when you need him…
I like everything BARRY HOFFMAN wrote, except if the scooter goes 18 mph and An inexperienced rider , possibly balancing luggage, gets off a train and gets on a scooter, the person NEEDS. a helmet! I see it as an accident waiting to happen! so, unless there is a helmet that is ” one size fits all, it seems like the city has to have some jurisdiction like “show me your rider insurance policy” and also to establish helmet rules.
“Why don’t they just go ahead and do it without getting city officials involved?”
Maybe because they don’t know they don’t need the City’s permission? Maybe because they believe the City Council would know whether it’s a viable option?
CNN did an article a few years back about e-scooters and a bit of research shows that many of the problems mentioned haven’t been solved.
The first one is helmet laws. Where are you going to get a helmet in the first place? And what do you do with the helmet if your trip is only one-way?
Second is dumped e-scooters. It’s going to happen…it’s happened everywhere else, Albany will be no different. So who is going to pay to clean them up when the city can’t even get stores to pick up carts?
Third is pick up/drop off. Albany is hugely spread out…are they only going to be allowed downtown? Will you be able to take them across the river to N Albany? Will you be able to cross Hwy 99 to West Albany? What about crossing I-5? As much as I was very grateful that Albany even has a transit system, the fact that it is only one-way was always a problem. I would ride the bus two miles to go shopping, but then had to ride 20 to get back home.
So, why did they go to the Council?
Well, they have a product and need allies (or at least to minimize opposition). Smart business move with NO negative bent.
Joe McCarthy thought there was a RED under EVERY BED. That didn’t end well.
They went to council first, like they should have, as several cities have banned or restricted scooter share, AFTER Bird did unauthorized rollouts. Bad PR and thousands of dollars lost after not working WITH cities for a successful partnership. I hope they can figure out a good solution. Albany has a great flat city which would be perfect for Bird scooter last mile functionality.
Have none of you used scooter share before?