Lime e-scooters start rolling on Tualatin’s streets on Sept. 27, with a safety academy and helmet giveaway to celebrate the launch.
“We are very excited Lime is bringing e-scooters to Tualatin,” said Nic Westendorf, the city’s deputy public works director. “The city is committed to innovating and embracing new modes of transit, as well as reducing emissions and traffic congestion. We hope offering folks another option to get around town will help support those efforts as well as provide a fun way to enjoy our city.”
City Council approved an e-scooter pilot program in June and planned to launch with another provider, Bird Scooter, that was intended to bridge first and last mile gaps in public transportation. However, Bird canceled the program before its vehicles hit the streets.
City officials instead enlisted Lime e-scooters to fill that gap, reducing the need for some short-distance car travel. Lime is the world’s largest e-scooter provider, with scooters in more than 250 cities around the globe.
The company’s Gen4 electric scooters allow riders to reduce maximum speed with a Comfort Mode setting using the Lime app when they are learning to ride and to return to top speed by disabling it when they have a feel for the ride.
The scooters also have a helmet selfie feature that uses an AI-enabled camera to recognize when riders are wearing the safety gear and rewards them with a discounted ride.
Tualatin riders can pick up a free helmet during the First Ride Academy, Lime’s free public training to teach new riders e-scooter safety and riding etiquette from 4-6 p.m. Sept. 27, at Tualatin Community Park.
