San Francisco Okays 4 e-Scooter Rental Services

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has given permits to four companies to operate as many as 10,000 free-floating electric scooter rentals in the city by the end of 2020.

The four companies—Lime, Uber’s Jump, Scoot and Ford-owed Spin—were chosen from 11 applicants. Those not making the cut were Bolt, Hellbiz, Lyft, Razor, Skip, VeoRide and Wheels.

Skip and Scoot are completing a year-long pilot program that put a combined 2,100 scooters in the city. San Francisco launched that initiative following complaints about an unregulated rollout in early 2018 by Lime, Spin and Bird (which now owns Scoot) that raised concerns about safety and clutter.

The new permits take effect Oct. 15. Initially, each of the four companies will be allowed to deploy 1,000 scooters. This could be increased to 2,500 per company, based on meeting performance incentives over the next year.

All parked scooters must be locked to a bike rack or other street fixtures when not in use. The city plans to accelerate the installation of racks in high-demand areas to facilitate the policy. The $300,000 program will be funded by a $75-per-scooter fee paid by the companies.

No more than 40% of a company’s fleet may be located in high traffic areas such as the city’s Financial District. 

The winning companies were chosen based on safety, pricing, operations plan, community engagement, recharging and sustainability. The companies also must submit plans for low-income residents and provide access for people with disabilities.

SFTM says more than 40% of participants during the pilot program would have used a personal vehicle or ride-hailing service if a scooter wasn’t available.

Critics say the city isn’t prepared to accommodate such a large influx of scooters. One city supervisor tells the San Francisco Chronicle that he plans to introduce legislation against the program next week.

The city also is fighting a lawsuit filed by Lime last October after it wasn’t chosen for the pilot program.