City of Boise joins E-scooter companies for first educational event

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BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — E-scooters will be hitting the streets of Boise starting mid-October.

The City says in partnership with Lime and Bird, they will be hosting educational events to make sure riders are safe and responsible on Boise streets.City leaders are spending this week making sure everyone is ready.

Monday afternoon at the City Hall Plaza everyone got the chance to ride some scooters and get familiar with how they work and the learn the rules focusing on the benefits how to ride where to park and how to keep yourself and others safe.

There will be two more educational events this week:

  • Tuesday, October 16 : 3 p.m. – 4 p.m at Julia Davis Park Rotary Plaza
  • Wednesday, October 17 : 6 p.m. – 7 p.m. at Esther Simplot Park Central Pavilion

The stationless scooters will be allowed within Boise city limits on sidewalks, streets, bike lanes and the 25 miles of greenbelt paths. But first, education is key to making sure these e-scooters are in the right hands and used safely.

"For a city like Boise it's decreasing congestion and providing a safe alternative option that's also economically friendly as well as friendly to the environment as well," Kyle Jax with Bird said.

E-scooters won't be replacing cars but they can provide an alternative for short trips around town.

"Just with that last mile transportation, getting people out into the community and giving them something a little bit more functional to move around in," Aaron Kindall with Lime said.

Side by side the scooters are pretty similar. Both use an app, cost a dollar to start and after that it's priced per minute.

Lime scooters cost 15 cents a minute and Bird scooters cost 20 cents per minute. Both of them require you to scan your license and be 18-years or older to ride.

In Boise they'll be allowed on streets sidewalks crosswalks bike lanes and the greenbelt. The scooters are allowed to go a maximum 15 miles per hour.

While helmets aren't required in Boise they're strongly recommended.

"We're really really focused on safety. We'll send you one for free," said Jax. "If you go inside the app under the safety button in the menu we'll send you one for free. The only cost is one dollar shipping."

You can also pick one up at their education events.

The City of Meridian launched the E-scooters in late September but they were quickly removed from the streets after four days, due to lack of education and misuse.

That's something city leaders and the companies have been working for months to avoid.

"As soon as we learned that some of these companies were beginning to look at Boise as a potential location our staff and our mayor and council dug in and said hey how do we avoid some of the pitfalls we've seen in other places and so there's been a lot of research that went into the code changes that were done," City of Boise spokesman Mike Journee said. "So we're pretty confident again cautiously optimistic about what the outcome will be."

To ensure the scooters are a success, the City of Boise says they are implementing additional rules and requirements:

  • Devices should never be left on private property, or in a location that obstructs ADA access, the pathways for pedestrians, bicyclists or motorists.
  • Additionally, E-scooters may not be parked in certain areas. Check the mobile app of the E-scooter provider for more information.

According to the city, users should follow proper etiquette. Anyone operating the device recklessly can be charged with a misdemeanor.

  • Park in designated zones
  • Do a pre-safety check
  • Apply brakes to slow down/stop
  • Be mindful of obstructions, pedestrians, motorists and bicyclists
  • Always follow traffic laws

The City says, to plan for the devices to hit the streets this month. They have updated the bicycle code to allow for the arrival.

The City is requiring that Lime and Bird, along with any other company operating a stationless service, to have a fleet of at least 50 but no more than 250 devices. The City also set a limit of 750 total stationless devices to be allowed in the city.

The updated city code allows for:

  • Stationless bicycles
  • E-bikes with a motor that has a power output of no more than 750 watts and a top speed of 20 miles per hour
  • E-scooters with a motor that has a power output of no more than 300 watts and a top speed of 15 miles per hour can be operated

The city says how the devices are used will be reviewed regularly to determine if any code changes need to be made. The city also wants to make sure everybody is being safe and responsible.

  • Don't forget to follow traffic rules.
  • Anyone driving these scooters recklessly can be ticketed.
  • You can call the City of Boise Code Complianceat (208) 972-8150 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. for issues related to devices being left on private property or otherwise undesignated storage locations.
  • Companies are responsible for removing the devices within 4 hours of receiving notification on weekdays, between 6 a.m. – 6 p.m., not including holidays. All other times, they have 10 hours to respond.

City council will revisit the ordinance on January 15,2019, three months after they launch.

Help requests, questions around the mobile applications, transnational issues and operational concerns should be directed to the companies

  • Lime: 1(888)-LIME-345
  • Bird: 1(866)-205-2442

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