Credit: Photo via Wikimedia Commons
As fate would have it, Bird, the e-mobility company that dumped e-scooters on Cleveland’s streets last summer and ignited the local debate — and ultimately the local policy — about micromobility, is now the first company with scooters available for rental in Cleveland.

City Hall has just alerted the press that Bird has completed its permitting process, and its devices are now out on the streets.

Bird is one of four vendors to have been selected for a six-month demonstration period in Cleveland, during which safety considerations are meant to be sussed out.

The other three vendors, Lime, Spin and VeoRide, are currently completing the permitting process, which includes establishing a local physical location and hiring a local staff. When Scene spoke with a representative from Lime last week, the company said they were planning a safety demonstration over the weekend and expected to have rentals ready to go by the end of the month. The others should be up and running soon as well. 

Under the city’s safety guidelines for the first six months, vendors are required to deactivate their scooters overnight, (from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.), so bear that in mind as you try them out. The city advises that all scooter users wear a helmet, stay alert, follow traffic laws and avoid riding erratically.

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This article appears in Aug 21-27, 2019.

Sam Allard is a former senior writer at Scene.

4 replies on “Bird Scooters Now Available for Rental in Cleveland, More on the Way”

  2. Every other major city has these. It’s good that CLE is finally with the times. But that 7am-7pm time is just dumb. Most cities have them until like midnight.

  3. THANK YOU LORD! its like everything else. its such a help to those who need them. as long as they are fully informed of how to do so safely, this is just the greatest thing ever. its like Jet skiing. riders are only a nuisance to their not courteous to all traffic pedestrian and vehicles. and they are too ignorant to ride safely and be informed on the proper legal way to use them

  4. People in Cleveland will act stupidly on them, and the city will then enact stupid laws and restrictions.
    And Cleveland will look stupid to all the visitors from other places where the system seems to work.

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