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Shared Scooters and E-bikes

Old 09-16-19, 11:18 AM
  #1  
tn_roadie
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Shared Scooters and E-bikes

Is anyone in a city where the scooter companies are also renting e-bikes? I live in a city where they have only placed scooters and I'm wondering if the e-bikes make them less money? There's a cap on units right now so they can't bring any more but that may change.
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Old 09-16-19, 01:24 PM
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My home town has both (Santa Monica/Los Angeles). Not sure which makes more or less money since they are private companies and their financials aren't available to the public.

I think the electric bikes are great! See lots of people riding them. They're much more stable and safer than the stand-up scooters. On the bad side, lots of people without street cycling experience are riding them recklessly. There was a fatality last week in Santa Monica:


No official news on what happened, but word on the street (which is usually wrong) says the cyclist made a left turn in front of a car coming from the other direction.
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Old 09-16-19, 02:31 PM
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Those things can be a nuisance. We have only had them in Montreal for a few weeks and already the city is having trouble with them
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montr...ium%3Dsharebar
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montr...king-1.5282300
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Old 09-17-19, 10:52 AM
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Colorado Springs just started e-bike sharing this spring after a couple of years of pedal-bike sharing. But no e-scooters. Denver has had e-scooters for a while as well as pedal-bike sharing. I just looked online and Denver kicked-off e-bike sharing yesterday.

But as far as I know, none of the companies in Denver or the Springs do both although Denver has scooters from Lyft and Uber.
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Old 09-18-19, 07:41 AM
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Originally Posted by BobbyG
Colorado Springs just started e-bike sharing this spring after a couple of years of pedal-bike sharing. But no e-scooters. Denver has had e-scooters for a while as well as pedal-bike sharing. I just looked online and Denver kicked-off e-bike sharing yesterday.

But as far as I know, none of the companies in Denver or the Springs do both although Denver has scooters from Lyft and Uber.
Are the e-bikes in Colorado Springs in a public program or from the companies like Lime and Lyft?
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Old 09-18-19, 08:26 AM
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Originally Posted by tn_roadie
Are the e-bikes in Colorado Springs in a public program or from the companies like Lime and Lyft?
No, it's a 501c3 charitable, non-profit.
https://pikeride.org/faq/

The current big supporters are a local liberal arts college and a developer. When it started a local health care system was the main supporter.
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Old 09-24-19, 12:24 PM
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thousands of e scooters being dropped into cites with no bike lanes. it's a cluster f*** and I'm luv it. cities are scrambling to build lanes and find ways to accommodate them which I think will be good for cyclists as well.
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Old 09-24-19, 10:31 PM
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Originally Posted by BobbyG
Colorado Springs just started e-bike sharing this spring after a couple of years of pedal-bike sharing. But no e-scooters. Denver has had e-scooters for a while as well as pedal-bike sharing. I just looked online and Denver kicked-off e-bike sharing yesterday.
Sharing or renting?
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Old 09-25-19, 06:46 AM
  #9  
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Originally Posted by boilermaker1
Sharing or renting?
I assume "bike sharing". I believe bike rentals are the traditional method...go to a bike shop, rent a bike for a set amount of time, return it to bike shop. Bike and scooter shares are the more recent multi-station, app-based, leave'm-somewhere-else when done (usually blocking the damn sidewalk).

Correct me if I'm wrong...(It IS bikeforums after all).
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Old 09-25-19, 09:39 AM
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I hope you're right because the debate here has made both pro- and anti- scooter politicians admit the infrastructure sucks. We'll see if they do anything about it.

Originally Posted by REDMASTA
thousands of e scooters being dropped into cites with no bike lanes. it's a cluster f*** and I'm luv it. cities are scrambling to build lanes and find ways to accommodate them which I think will be good for cyclists as well.
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Old 09-25-19, 09:44 AM
  #11  
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I think most bike share programs are rentals but they're operated by government or a quasi-governmental agency. The short term rates are higher on the premise they will be used for short trips. The bike shares I know about are all docked but the companies like Jump, Bird, Lyft, etc. all are dockless just like the scooters. These companies all have enormous amounts of capital and they are burning it at a fast rate. Uber (which owns Jump) lost a bazillion dollars last quarter. It will be interesting to see who is still standing (or riding) in a couple of years.

From what I can tell they are all going to e-bikes because they have a higher utilization rate than bicycles. I rode a Jump e-bike and it was of pretty good quality and had good pickup.

Originally Posted by BobbyG
I assume "bike sharing". I believe bike rentals are the traditional method...go to a bike shop, rent a bike for a set amount of time, return it to bike shop. Bike and scooter shares are the more recent multi-station, app-based, leave'm-somewhere-else when done (usually blocking the damn sidewalk).

Correct me if I'm wrong...(It IS bikeforums after all).
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Old 09-26-19, 06:07 AM
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Originally Posted by BobbyG
I assume "bike sharing". I believe bike rentals are the traditional method...go to a bike shop, rent a bike for a set amount of time, return it to bike shop. Bike and scooter shares are the more recent multi-station, app-based, leave'm-somewhere-else when done (usually blocking the damn sidewalk).

Correct me if I'm wrong...(It IS bikeforums after all).
I believe there's a bit of semantic argument in that "bike sharing" doesn't actually involve sharing anything. It's just another form of bike rental.

The "sharing" terminology was borrowed from the Uber world, where the euphemism was arguably employed to further the notion that those businesses were not taxi services and thus fell outside of extant regulatory processes. But Uber is really just a taxi service you summon via app rather than a phone call or raised hand and bike sharing is just bike rental that doesn't require human contact.
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Old 09-26-19, 10:42 AM
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I think it also comes from older-style bike share systems which were more appropriately named- eg free bikes, intended for use in a small (frequently a college campus) setting which were free to use- theft prevention was just via honor system. Think a few small towns used this kind of thing too.
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Old 10-01-19, 01:36 PM
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I already share the hiker biker trails with walkers, runners, people with baby carriages, bikes, trikes, roller skaters, skate boards, electric bikes, electric trikes, and people with dogs. So what is one more type of device going to matter?
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Old 10-10-19, 03:59 PM
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New Orleans USA has non-electric bike share for about two years now. I think it works really well in my city. Electric bike shares are coming I have heard. eScooters businesses are banned.

I use the bikes a fair amount myself and they are called BlueBikes after Blue Cross Blue Shield medical insurance company who sponsors them. My only gripe is the keyboard panel push buttons often have to be pushed a zillion times for my code to be entered and some of the displays are near impossible to read in bright sunlight. Summer in New Orleans in bright sunlight it is pushing 120°F mid day so jerking around with a goofy keyboard for five minutes is darned uncomfortable. And maddening.

Otherwise I feel the bike share is a nice addition to our bike culture. I hope they can afford the upkeep. They are owned and operated by Uber. So who knows what kind of money they want to throw at maintenance.
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Old 10-10-19, 06:20 PM
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Originally Posted by rydabent
I already share the hiker biker trails with walkers, runners, people with baby carriages, bikes, trikes, roller skaters, skate boards, electric bikes, electric trikes, and people with dogs. So what is one more type of device going to matter?
Under normal use with normal people, it, (scooter,/mopeds) are not going to matter at all.... Unfortunately, People being people, Just because something has pedals, and looks like a bicycle, they consider it a bicycle, even when tho, there's absolutely no human effort is involved in making the "bicycle" move. it starts to become a "problem" and depending on their numbers can become a huge "problem"... IMO...
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Old 10-14-19, 09:39 AM
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Define the "problem".
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Old 10-14-19, 10:49 AM
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Originally Posted by rydabent
Define the "problem".
The "problem" IMO, starts when a motorised bike starts to be used on sidewalks and trails, where only bicycle's are allowed... It's as simple as that. Anything with a throttle is a motorised vehicle, IMO, (not talking about a wheelchair type). E-Assist bikes, have no throttle and must be pedalled, thus the legal definition is that they are still bicycles and can be used anywhere a bicycle is allowed... Then along comes the E-Bike with a throttle and... People are using these motorised bikes under the guise of "it's a bicycle" cause it has pedals, which are hardly, if ever used, at least not the ones I see around here...

EDIT; In other words, even regular bicycles could be banned from trails and sidewalks where they are allowed today, as a way to deal with said motorized bikes..

Last edited by 350htrr; 10-14-19 at 03:29 PM.
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Old 10-15-19, 07:13 AM
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Originally Posted by 350htrr
The "problem" IMO, starts when a motorised bike starts to be used on sidewalks and trails, where only bicycle's are allowed... It's as simple as that. Anything with a throttle is a motorised vehicle, IMO, (not talking about a wheelchair type). E-Assist bikes, have no throttle and must be pedalled, thus the legal definition is that they are still bicycles and can be used anywhere a bicycle is allowed... Then along comes the E-Bike with a throttle and... People are using these motorised bikes under the guise of "it's a bicycle" cause it has pedals, which are hardly, if ever used, at least not the ones I see around here...

EDIT; In other words, even regular bicycles could be banned from trails and sidewalks where they are allowed today, as a way to deal with said motorized bikes..
The current class 1,2,3 system that exists in many states was created by a model bill pushed by the bicycle manufacturers through People for Bikes. I think it passed in about 20 states including California and Tennessee. Class 1 and 3 are pedal assist and 2 is throttle so you can thank Trek, Giant, Specialized, etc. for that. In my experience the riders that speed on greenways are the young (mostly) healthy ones wearing lycra. Our local Pedego store tells me they sell 2/3s of their bikes to old people. We're not speeding. I think most class 2 users pedal because it's still a bicycle. My argument has always been that we should deal with behavior not technology. We don't ban Corvettes but expect the driver to obey the law.

I support treating e-bikes just like bicycles when it comes to their legal status. If you want to grow bicycling then we need a big tent and that includes e-bikes. I want to see the scooter companies in my city rent e-bikes, which they do in other places, just so it increases the number of bicycles on the street.
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Old 10-16-19, 10:33 AM
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Yes parts of the greater Phoenix area has ride share scooters and bikes. There's quite a bit around Tempe, but recently cut back since Tempe imposed hefty registration fees on each unit. They are amazing to use to get around and then set it and forget it.
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Old 10-22-19, 11:30 AM
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It is pretty much a tempest in a teapot.
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Old 10-22-19, 12:39 PM
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https://www.chicagotribune.com/busin...fui-story.html

After about 800,000 rides and many ER visits. The Chicago scooter pilot comes to an end.

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Old 10-24-19, 11:24 AM
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In other words------------------git off my lawn----------er-------bike path!!!!!
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Old 10-25-19, 06:29 AM
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Originally Posted by tn_roadie
We don't ban Corvettes but expect the driver to obey the law.

I support treating e-bikes just like bicycles when it comes to their legal status.
A Corvette has 4 wheels and a motor. Just like all other cars. An e-bike has 2 wheels and a motor, just like all other ...
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Old 10-25-19, 06:52 AM
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Originally Posted by 350htrr
The "problem" IMO, starts when a motorised bike starts to be used on sidewalks and trails, where only bicycle's are allowed... It's as simple as that. Anything with a throttle is a motorised vehicle, IMO, (not talking about a wheelchair type). E-Assist bikes, have no throttle and must be pedalled, thus the legal definition is that they are still bicycles and can be used anywhere a bicycle is allowed... Then along comes the E-Bike with a throttle and... People are using these motorised bikes under the guise of "it's a bicycle" cause it has pedals, which are hardly, if ever used, at least not the ones I see around here...

EDIT; In other words, even regular bicycles could be banned from trails and sidewalks where they are allowed today, as a way to deal with said motorized bikes..
You seem to exclude "wheel chair types" so would you also exclude people that need a motor assist bike or trike so they can get out of the house?
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