The City of Vancouver has selected Lime Technology Inc. to supply and operate its upcoming shared e-scooter program.
The service is expected to begin in late summer, starting off in the Hastings-Sunrise and Grandview-Woodland neighbourhoods. Docking stations and e-scooters will be available in these two areas to start, and will expand throughout the year and 2025, westward.
The city says the agreement it has signed with Lime is for an initial five-year term. The city will have the option to extend, if it so chooses.
Officials say the selection of Lime as the vendor comes after “a rigorous evaluation process.”
Similar to bike-share programs, like the Mobi by Rogers program already in place in Vancouver, e-scooters aim to grow the shared mobility network in the city.
According to officials, the e-scooter system is expected to be “cost-neutral” to the city, adding Lime is responsible for designing, implementing, running, and maintaining the system during the contract period.
They add the city and company will work together to increase safety, through measures like the creation of slow and no-ride zones, sidewalk detection, a “training” mode, as well as sobriety testing and education.