BIG RAPIDS — With the success of the Bird Scooters coming to Big Rapids, additional companies have started to show an interest.
City manager Mark Gifford told city commissioners the city has been approached by several other scooter companies, and city staff is looking at possible changes to the city ordinances dealing with scooters.
“This is more of a look forward to what is coming in the future,” Gifford said during the work session portion of a meeting this week. “We have been approached by other scooter companies, and as we talk to other companies, it has become apparent that we need a little more robust ordinance to deal with the applications and interest.”
He explained that this is something he and city staff have begun working on and a more detailed discussion will be brought before the board later this year.
“We have looked at ordinances that other cities have adopted, and we will model something after some of those examples,” Gifford said. “We wanted to let the commission know that this is something we are working on. This is really an issue for the future commission, but it is also important to talk about it with the commission that is in place now.
“We don’t have any pending approvals right now, but we have had interest from other companies,” he continued. “I look forward to what is coming and will be talking to you (the board) about it. I will be able to give you more details and examples at a future time.”
Bird Scooters set up operations in Big Rapids in April and currently have a fleet of around 50 scooters in the city.
Although they got off to a bit of a rough start, with resident complaints coming in to city staff and public safety officers regarding issues with the scooters, things seem to have smoothed out.
Some of the complaints included young children riding without adult supervision, scooters being left on sidewalks and in roadways, adults riding under the influence, riding erratically and not following road rules, discarded scooters creating a hindrance for disabled residents, and scooters going too fast on sidewalks, the Riverwalk and the White Pine Trail.
Bird Scooter spokesperson Natalie Sawyer told the Pioneer at the time that they were working with city staff and local operational partners to implement new strategies to address the concerns.
ID verification technology was implemented by Bird Scooter to address the issue of underage riders. All riders are required to show a picture of their ID verifying they are over 18.
In addition, GPS technology allows Bird to monitor where the scooters are located at all times and to create customized zones that regulate speed, Sawyer said.
Gifford added that using Bird’s GEO Fencing technology, they have the ability to reduce the speeds on the Riverwalk, White Pine Trail and the downtown area.
“Since the changes were made, the number of complaints received, both at city hall and with public safety, have been greatly reduced,” Gifford told the city commission at a previous meeting. “We are continuing to address the issue of the scooters being left in various locations, although those complaints are now fewer and farther between.”
The city staff will begin looking at the city ordinances to determine what changes will be necessary regarding the application process for additional companies interested in bringing scooters to the city.
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