Christchurch may get 700 e-scooters

About 700 electric scooters could soon be buzzing around Christchurch.

US bike and scooter share company Lime has applied to the Christchurch City Council for a permit to run a user-pays, app-based e-scooter share service for a three-month trial from mid-September.

Councillors will decide this week whether to grant the permit, ensuring the e-scooters meet safety standards, specifying the number allowed.

The permit will specify the number of scooters allowed on city streets and identify key performance indicators.

Council staff will then recommend whether the service should be extended after the pilot.

Lime aims to have about 1400 e-scooters if the trial is successful.

The e-scooters have 300W motors capable of about 27km/h.

They have around a 48km range and are equipped with front and rear lights, brakes and a bell.

A phone app shows users where the e-scooters can be collected from and unlocks them, the scooters then left at the rider’s destination instead of specific stands.

They are then collected and charged overnight.

The Lime e-scooters are expected to help fill a void left with Christchurch Bike Share reportedly removing its stands from mid-September.

The demand for ride share services is proving popular overseas, and it is exciting to see this proposed start-up service in Christchurch, council strategy and transformation general manager Brendan Anstiss says.

“Ride share schemes tend to integrate well with public transport, offering a fast and convenient way for people to make the first or last part of their journey,” he says.

“They also offer residents and visitors a fun and active way to get around the city.”