Three more electric scooter companies allowed to operate in San Francisco

Lime scooters are allowed back in San Francisco after being banned. Oct. 15, 2019

Three electric scooter companies are now allowed to operate their vehicles on San Francisco streets.

Starting on Tuesday, a total of 500 Lime, Spin and Jump scooters are back in The City, after being banned about 18 months  ago, bringing the total number of companies to five and the number of scooters to 2,500.

The scooters were originally banned in part because of safety concerns, proper usage and that they weren’t accessible to all. Lime General Manager EV Ellington told KTVU that the company is going to spend a lot of time on educational awareness, more rugged tires, and screens that flash driving messages. For Tuesday only, Lime was handing out folding helmets, which are not required by law, at a safety demonstration in the Bayview. Otherwise, people can buy the helmets online. 

The SFMTA will l keep a database of complaints - where people can report when scooters are left strewn on the sidewalk and other problems.