Athens puts brakes on scooters amid complaints

ATHENS, Ga. — Amid concerns that electric scooters are being dumped all over Athens and pose a danger to the public, the local government has temporarily banned them.

Bird scooters will be grounded following a recent decision by the Athens-Clarke County Commission, The Athens Banner-Herald reported.

The scooters began showing up on Athens sidewalks and streets in August, and soon generated concerns about safety.

The biggest problem is that users are “dumping them all over the place,” Commissioner Andy Herod said.

“They are making private profit and the public is picking up the cost of having to deal with this,” he said.

The University of Georgia began impounding scooters left on the campus soon after they began arriving. As of the end of last month, UGA was holding more than 1,100 of the scooters, and had assessed more than $500,000 in fines and fees on the company.

The ban won’t affect a UGA bicycle-sharing program, said Commissioner Jerry NeSmith, chairman of the county commission’s

“It’s a good alternative form of transportation. That’s not the issue. The issue is public safety.”

— ATHENS COMMISSIONER JERRY NESMITH

legislative review committee.

The ban is meant to be temporary so that local officials can draft rules for the scooters, the newspaper reported.

Committee members believe the technology is wanted and useful, NeSmith said. They expect them to eventually return.

“It’s a good alternative form of transportation,” he said. “That’s not the issue. The issue is public safety.”

The company that owns and maintains the scooters received 10 days to remove them. Officials intend to impound any Bird scooters still lingering after that grace period.

Athens isn’t alone in trying to address concerns.

In September, Chattanooga city officials outlined proposed rules for scooters, which include permit requirements, defined service areas, “robust” education for riders about safety and traffic rules and other regulations.

Then in November, representatives from the scooter company Lime, which rents scooters in nearby cities such as Nashville and Atlanta, as well as 100 other cities around the world, attended a Chattanooga City Council agenda session to talk to council members.

Councilman Darrin Ledford voiced concern over the scooters, mostly over the “dockless nature” of the scooters and how they could be left anywhere, including in the middle of the sidewalk or street.

But Shapiro said scooters that could only be ridden from one dock to another present a barrier for people trying to use it as an alternative transportation if where they really need to go doesn’t have a dock.

Lime scooters cost $1 to unlock and rent for 15 cents per minute with 30 minutes costing just under $5. When fully charged, the scooters can travel up to 33 miles, a company representative told Chattanooga leaders. The scooters are also GPS-enabled and require the user to download an app and upload their credit card information before use. A rider has to be at least 18 years of age.

The Times Free Press contributed to this story.