Bird e-scooters are now available for rent near Lake Barcroft (employee photo by David Taube)
Hundreds of electric scooters have surfaced in Fairfax County after the county announced last week that it had approved two vendors for its shared mobility device program.
Bird and Superpedestrian’s LINK can each have up to 300 scooters in the county, but depending on usage, that number could grow to a total of 1,200 scooters for the two companies. The devices are available for rent and cost $ 1 to unlock with prices based on travel time.
Bird has discounts for low-income and senior residents, as well as veterans and other users, and the company has already listed the devices on its app. On Tuesday morning (July 27), scooter groups were staged in Annandale as well as West Falls Church and near Lake Barcroft.
Superpedestrian plans to make their scooters available this fall.
“Like bicycles, e-scooters can be used on a motorway, a sidewalk, a shared path, a roadway or a zebra crossing,” said a press release from the district.
The only restrictions that companies have limited the scooters to top speeds of 10 mph and they cannot be used on sidewalks or zebra crossings with signs prohibiting shared mobility devices.
The district said on Tuesday that such signage was not yet in place.
The county says users should park scooters in areas that don’t obstruct normal vehicle or pedestrian traffic. Individuals violating the county rules could face a violation and a fine of up to $ 50 for the first violation and up to $ 500 for each subsequent violation.
“When driving an e-scooter, use the sidewalk if possible,” said the district’s traffic spokeswoman Anna Nissinen in a statement. “Remember, if you are driving on the sidewalk you have to give way to pedestrians! In the absence of a sidewalk or other off-road path, you can ride a scooter on the road when the speed limit is 25 mph or less. “
She also pointed out that e-scooter users should stay as far to the right as possible and use the bike path if there is one.
The board of directors approved the devices in November 2019 and laid down rules for their operation as it noted concerns about the possible decommissioning of scooters.
To help resolve issues, the board needs $ 5,000 in bonds from companies operating in the county. The money can be used when the county workers need to remove and dispose of abandoned scooters.
“If you notice that an e-scooter has been parked in an unsuitable place or left on private property, you can contact the device operator listed on the e-scooter and the operator must remove it,” said the district and noted that people can send email [email protected] to report any problems.
Near Arlington National Cemetery, pedestrians and cyclists can sometimes see abandoned scooters scattered horizontally on the grass on paths.
Bird spokeswoman Courtney Black said in a statement that the company is trying to educate drivers on proper scooter etiquette, reminding them not to leave scooters in public, to ensure sidewalks, driveways and parking lots Fire hydrants are accessible.
The company also allows members to use its Community Mode feature to report issues that may include damaged or poorly parked scooters, for example. Bird reviews the reports and sends someone to act on them.
When asked about the county’s concerns about abandoned scooters, Superpedestrian said it worked with cities in the U.S. that have similar requirements for their location.
“We are proud that we have never been asked to leave a city or to cease operations,” said spokesman Jamie Perkins in a statement.
To address potential problems, the company has an in-house fleet team of local employees who manage operations in a timely manner and use technology to ensure that the scooters are parked as required and then parked again when needed to ensure availability and stacking prevent in one place.
Superpedestrian estimates how many scooters it will be placing in the area and is working with Fairfax County to grow operations.
“We prioritize our service in areas with critical public transport links, in areas with parking congestion and business demand, and also serve underserved areas,” Perkins wrote.