Lime Scooters: Plans to roll out electric scooters on Gold Coast in time for summer
Lime Scooters will roll out in Gold Coast suburbs under a plan to bring the green electric two-wheelers to the city’s streets. FULL LIST OF SUBURBS.
Gold Coast
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LIME Scooters will roll out in three Gold Coast suburbs over summer as part of proposed three-month trial.
But they have to get past council first.
The electric scooter company wants to be operational on the Coast from December 1, using 500 scooters.
The proposed trial, Lime’s second stop in Queensland after Brisbane, has already gained the support of a powerful city leader who has long campaigned against rogue scooter users.
The trial would feature:
* Three proposed locations – Southport around the Broadwater Parklands; Griffith University and the Gold Coast University; and Varsity Lakes, from the suburb’s railway station to Bond University.
* Speed limits of 20-25km/h.
* No riding and speed-limited zones, and no parking “red zones”.
* Regular community safety events.
* Lime staff who would work at the trial locations to provide assistance.
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Lime spokesman Nelson Savanh said the service would benefit locals as well as tourists.
“The Gold Coast is the perfect place – it has the best weather, great infrastructure and lots of tourists who need to get around,” he said.
“We want to be able to showcase on the Gold Coast that it is a great way of moving tourists around and it would compliment the light rail.”
The scooters will be deployed before dawn by Lime and collected at the end of the day for repair and charging.
More than 1.7 million trips have been recorded on the scooters in Brisbane since the service launched last November.
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The scooters are in use across 120 cities in 30 countries. Riders must be 16 years old or 12 years and older with adult supervision.
Among those already won over is Surfers Paradise MP John-Paul Langbroek who has been a harsh critic of scooter riders on the city’s footpaths.
But he welcomed the proposal as an ideal solution.
“They have reassured me that they have dealt with the concerns I have expressed about the speeds and safety as well as the issues we had with Mobike where they were discarded for days on end,” he said.
“I am not a member of the fun police but I am supportive of appropriate measures being taken to halt issues which have been a problem with previous bike hire services.”
Police and the council earlier this year launched a crackdown against scooter hoons on the streets of Surfers Paradise.
The proposed trial will go before council’s Transport and Infrastructure Committee on Thursday.
Lime last week wrote to Mayor Tom Tate lobbying for his support.
“We also accept and emphasise the need for a tightly controlled and properly regulated trial, which could include more than one operator, whereby council can be assured it has responsible and accountable partners delivering this vital new technology,” Mr Savanh wrote.
“Our aim is to work closely with you to ensure our limited trial is successful and that any subsequent citywide rollout achieves the highest possible safety standards.”
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