RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — People riding rental scooters in Richmond can now ride them much later than before after City Council approved an updated electric scooter policy at Monday’s meeting.
The amended shared mobility device ordinance expands the operating hours from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m., giving riders four extra hours from the previous cut-off time of 9 p.m.
Dironna Clarke, director of the city’s Office of Equitable Transit and Mobility, presented at the city’s Land Use, Housing and Transportation Standing Committee meeting last month.
“Every other mode in our multimodal chain does not cut off at 9 p.m., and we find that there’s a break in that chain with the scooters ending so early,” she said. “People who are riding transit or who are getting off of work can really benefit from using the scooter until their last mile.”
Lime’s electric scooters hit the Richmond area about two years ago. Since then, Bird scooters have come back to the city. Companies can have up to 500 scooters or bikes deployed, at a yearly price of up to $45,000, depending on how many are distributed.
Lime riders have completed more than 170,000 trips since the company launched in Richmond back in March 2021.
Meanwhile, another scooter company, Spin, had their application approved and will be making its way to Richmond soon, Clarke said.
But with more people allowed to ride later into the night, Clarke said the city is addressing some safety concerns.
Vendors are upgrading the scooters so people won’t tip over. The shared mobility device providers are providing resources for riders who have questions or may have an issue. The contact information is on the city’s website.
The city is also implementing geofencing, which slows down and stops a scooter. This will prevent it from going near certain areas.
“We’ve done that along the waterways and we’ve done that around areas that we do not want the scooters to be,” Clarke said. She added the scooters can’t travel to other localities.
Incidents that occurred on scooters have gone down from 5.3 a month last year to 4.3 a month, Clarke said.
Gary Martin, who lives in the Richmond area, said he rides electric scooters often.
“I would just say everyone should be safe and responsible when driving them,” he said.
Drew Lake, Regional General Manager of Lime, told 8News in a statement Wednesday: “Lime is proud to provide Richmond residents and visitors with safe, affordable, and sustainable transportation options. Our program here is built on a foundation of safety and equity.”
Martin usually takes a ride on an e-scooter while traveling in the Fan and in the downtown area.
“Always a lot of fun. A great way to show friends around the area and an overall positive experience,” he said.
Clarke said concerns over lack of service in South Richmond prompted them to add a mandate in the policy–requiring companies to put at least 20% of their fleet on the city’s south side. This way, they can ensure there’s an equitable distribution across the city.
“We prioritize the safety of our rides and those around them, and we ensure our e-scooters are available to all via our Lime Access program and equity deployments, including on Richmond’s south side,” Lake said. “We look forward to continuing our work with the City of Richmond and our community partners to ensure the long-term success of the program, solving any issues as they arrive in a collaborative and thoughtful way.”
Clarke added the updated policy includes raising the companies’ annual permit fee by 25%.
She said the money will benefit the city’s bike share program.
