At the very least a branding deal signals a tacit endorsement of this tech as NOW COSTS DOUBLE and is still unproven to move anybody but a handful of hipsters around Midtown sidewalks.
Checkit:
The price of renting a Bird Scooter just went from 15 cents a minute to 33 cents a minute. Bird might be getting some competition in Kansas City. The city is considering proposals from several new vendors . . .
The city said they can't comment on the proposals, but the director of KCATA tweeted out a picture this week hinting at a prototype for a RideKC model. The transit authority confirmed that they submitted a plan for their own fleet.
And so we roll with opinion from our blog community . . .
SHOULD KANSAS CITY FINANCE THE SCOOTER TECH FAD OR FOCUS ON MORE ACCESSIBLE TRANSIT OPTIONS?!?!
Further reading . . .
NPR: As Electric Scooters Proliferate, So Do Minor Injuries And Blocked Sidewalks
CityLab: The Hot New Thing in Dockless Electric Scooters: Docks
Slate: I Almost Died Riding an E-Scooter
Fast Company: The scooter wars are actually a century old
GreenBiz: The sleeper issue for new mobility tech is ... insurance?
You decide . . .