Lime wants to keep its e-scooters in Tacoma past its current trial period

Editor’s note: Story has been corrected for Lime’s permit extension request to 60 days past current 60-day trial period.

Those e-scooters in Tacoma don’t appear to be going away anytime soon.

Lime, the company that introduced electric scooter-sharing locally, has asked for an extension of its permit for up to 60 days past its 60-day period, which started Sept. 21, making the permit 120 days total.

The city’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Technical Advisory Committee has recommended allowing the extension, city spokeswoman Stacy Ellifritt said.

“City staff will consider public input and usage details as they evaluate possibilities of extension,” Ellifritt told The News Tribune via email. “As the pilot comes to a close this winter, city staff will conduct outreach to evaluate the program.”

The comments will be used to help guide the city in developing an official scooter and bike share program that goes beyond the pilot trial.

In addition to Lime, Bird offers the service in Tacoma. Its 60-day permit is set to expire Dec. 11. So far, Bird has not sought an extension, according to Ellifritt.

The company did not respond Wednesday to a request for comment.

Elsewhere, Lime has had to recall some units after finding a small number could have batteries with the potential to catch fire.

The Washington Post reported Tuesday that Lime said 2,000 scooters were recalled in August. The company said the risk existed only in a small percentage of bikes and scooters, but a larger number were recalled “out of an abundance of caution.”

The recalls were in Lime’s Los Angeles, San Diego and Lake Tahoe markets, according to the company.

Ellifritt said the city has gotten no reports of fires involving e-scooters for either Lime or Bird through its TacomaFIRST 311 phone reporting program since Sept. 21.

“The Fire Department was also contacted and at this time they didn’t believe they had received any reports,” she said.

A Lime representative referred an inquiry from The News Tribune about the recalls to its blog about the batteries: https://bit.ly/2Q8USZi. The entry details the safety and corrective steps the company has taken.

Beyond the battery problem, the company in the blog also notes scooter baseboards from one manufacturer sometimes break “when subjected to repeated abuse.”

“As part of our scooter deployment process, we conduct rigorous stress and safety testing on all models, including the Okai model in use,” the company said. “We also consistently and thoroughly educate our riders on the correct and safest ways to ride.

“Nevertheless, it’s possible for Okai baseboards to crack or break if ridden off a curb at high speed. We are currently studying this issue and incorporating these learnings into our design process.”

In Tacoma, the city has not requested the tracking of injuries through MultiCare or CHI-Franciscan health systems.

TacomaFIRST 311 has logged at least five reports of e-scooters being improperly parked or blocking sidewalks, according to the city. There also were five calls regarding “dangerous conditions for pedestrians: almost getting hit by someone on scooter, reckless riding, or too fast.”

Two calls mentioned riders not wearing helmets and one reported an e-scooter “doing burnouts in the 11th Street bridge elevator.”

This story was originally published October 31, 2018 at 2:23 PM.