People display driving electrical scooters in scooter share pilot program in the east Bronx. (NYC Transportation Department)
NEW YORK – Not that way back, electrical scooters had been unlawful in New York City. That lastly modified final summer season. And in only a few days, an official e-scooter sharing pilot program will launch in the Bronx.
The two-year program begins on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2021, the Department of Transportation introduced. Phase 1 will deliver as much as 3,000 scooters from the corporations Bird, Lime, and Veo. That might enhance to six,000 scooters when Phase 2 begins someday in 2022.
“This is an exciting announcement as we officially bring shared micromobility to the East Bronx community,” Transportation Commissioner Hank Gutman stated in a press release. “With safety as our top priority, we look forward to a continued collaboration with Bird, Lime, and Veo, elected officials, and local Bronx communities to make e-scooter share an effective, convenient, and equitable way to get around.”
Based on enter from neighborhood conferences in latest months, the Department of Transportation created dozens of painted parking corrals on sidewalks in sure areas.
“Riders wanting to park in areas with corrals, must return their e-scooter to a corral,” DOT stated in a information launch. “In other parts of the zone, riders can park on the sidewalk, against the curb, and out of the pedestrian path of travel.”
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You have to be 18 or older to journey. You merely unlock a scooter utilizing the particular model’s app. The value to journey a Veo or Bird scooter is $1 to unlock after which 39 cents per minute. Lime scooter rides value $1 to unlock and 30 cents per minute. All three corporations have agreed to supply reductions for low-income New Yorkers enrolled in federal and state help applications.
In praising the launch of the e-scooter program, the head of the advocacy group Transportation Alternatives stated persevering with to construct protected bike lanes, which scooters are allowed to make use of, stays an necessary a part of road security.
![woman wearing helmet and mask looks at her mobile phone as she stands next to an electric scooter on the sidewalk; two more scooters are near her](https://images.foxtv.com/static.fox5ny.com/www.fox5ny.com/content/uploads/2021/08/932/524/NYCDOT_escooters_2.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
The electrical scooter pilot program options designated areas on sidewalks for parking electrical scooters. (NYC Transportation Department)
“Bringing micromobility to the East Bronx will shorten commutes, support local businesses, and shift our city towards a future that is less reliant on cars,” govt director Danny Harris stated in a press release. “One of the best ways to ensure the pilot is a success is by building out more protected on-street infrastructure, and we will continue to work with community members, elected officials, and the NYC DOT team to ensure these life-saving projects advance without delay.”
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New York regulation treats e-scooters equally to bicycles.
“E-scooter users are permitted to ride in bike lanes and on streets with speed limits no greater than 30mph,” in keeping with DOT. “E-scooter users may not ride on the sidewalk and must obey all local traffic laws.”
The neighborhoods in Phase 1 embrace Woodlawn, Wakefield, Eastchester, Edenwald, Williamsbridge, Co-Op City, Baychester, Olinville, Pelham, Pelham Parkway Gardens, Morris Park, and Van Nest.
Phase 2 will add neighborhoods farther south, together with Throggs Neck and Soundview.
The complete 18-square-mile pilot zone is residence to 570,000 individuals, together with 25,000 NYCHA residents, in keeping with metropolis officers.
![A map showing two areas of the east Bronx that are the pilot zone for an electric scooter share](https://images.foxtv.com/static.fox5ny.com/www.fox5ny.com/content/uploads/2021/08/932/524/NYCDOT_escooters_Bronx_pilot_zones.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
A map displaying two areas of the east Bronx which are the pilot zone for an electrical scooter share program. (NYC Transportation Department)