KUSA – Lime announced Monday that it will remove its scooters for two weeks while it works with the city of Denver to determine how they will be regulated.
This comes three days after the city said it intended to create a pilot program to make way for the San Mateo, California-based company and its competitor Bird, headquartered in Santa Monica, California, to remain in the Mile High City.
“We appreciate the [Denver Public Works] for their efforts, and hope to return to Denver soon,” the news release from Lime reads. “We are eager to continue to serve Denver residents and visitors with Lime as their affordable, sustainable transportation option.”
For its part, Denver Public Works said it was figuring out the regulations on their own while accepting input from Lime and Bird.
The city's Public Works also said last it week it is “engaging with dockless operators” and giving them a way to apply for a permit by June 29. Lime and Bird were asked to remove their scooters from the public right of way until this could be implemented.
A spokesperson for Bird could not immediately comment on whether their scooters are also being removed. A check of the Bird app for iPhone Monday afternoon showed not a single scooter in Denver city limits available for rent.
The goal of the pilot program is to keep the regulations for shared scooters in line with Denver’s mobility goals, which are aimed at reducing the number of cars on the road.
It’s been a whirlwind few weeks for scooter news in Denver.
On June 1, Denver Public Works issued a release ordering companies to remove the scooters from the right-of-way and claimed that Lime didn’t ask for permission to drop them on the city’s sidewalks in the first place.
This has prompted the city to explore new ways to regulate the scooters … but not before Bird swooped in with their electric rides, too.
The scooters have descended on several cities in California, with many taking a similar tack as Denver, including San Fransisco who banned them and Santa Monica who capped the number of scooters. San Diego, on the other hand, adopted a "laissez-faire" approach, according to a report from the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Despite Lime and Bird's troubles with various towns and cities, both companies have deep cash reserved. Lime is currently valued at $1 billion, per Bloomberg, and Bird is keeping pace, TechCrunch reports.
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