Indianapolis City-County Council to discuss scooter regulations Monday

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – Happening Monday, Indianapolis leaders area expected to talk about the future of rentable scooters in the city. City-county councilors are set to talk about the issue Monday night after sending cease-and-desist letters to scooter companies Lime and Bird.

Many are wondering how will the city regulate a business with no docking stations?  What about safety? 

Bird started pulling their scooters off the streets last Thursday, just about a week after its rival Lime-S pulled their devices off Indy’s streets. City leaders released a proposed set of rules on Friday. Those included a $15,000  permit fee that the scooter companies must pay to operate in the city. The company will also have to pay $1 per day per scooter.    

There may be a limit on how many devices are in the city at one time and exactly where they can go. There may be a limit on geographic distance. 

One of the major questions that remains is how to park them. The city-county council proposal says scooters need to be parked six feet out of the way, in grassy areas of walkways, not in landscape or in existing bike racks. They cannot block anything like bus stops, Pacer Bikeshare docks, streets or alleys. 

The proposal also says company may be jointly liable for individual offenses. One regulation suggests the scooter must have a speedometer. A Lime-S scooter has one built in and Bird scooter does not.

Something not addressed in the proposal: Helmets and if there will be a fine from the city if you’re found riding without one. Both companies say they intend to bring them all back to Indianapolis when this is worked out. The full meeting is scheduled Monday at 7 p.m.