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Tampa Bay Business Journal ran an article on these as Bird Lime and Spin have just hit the streets of downtown Tampa. But I have reached my 3-article limit for the next 30 days so couldn't post from there and found this article instead.

“Following a number of high-profile accidents, legislation around scooters is likely to tighten.”

An Uber driver in Austin told me that Austin hospitals treat on average 77 scooter accidents a week.

How do e-scooters work?

Bird
Download the Bird app for iOS.
Create a login with your email address.
A map in the app will show you any nearby e-scooters (called Birds).
Zoom in to see more detail - like each scooter’s battery charge.
Before you grab e-scooter, add your credit card (Settings > Payments).
When you find an e-scooter, near you, you tap the button to unlock it.
The app asks you to snap a photo of the scooter’s QR code.
On your first rental, you may need to scan your driver’s license.
To start the e-scooter, you kick off three times, then push the throttle button.
You squeeze with the right hand to accelerate and brake with the left.
When done, park by a bike rack and don’t block public pathways.
To end the ride, open the app and tap the button to lock the scooter.
The app will show you the ride time cost.
Go here to see Bird’s tutorial.

Lime
Download the Lime app for iOS or Android.
Create a login with your phone number or Facebook.
A map in the app will show you any nearby e-scooters (called Lime-S)
Zoom in to see more detail - like each scooter’s battery charge.
Before you grab e-scooter, add your credit card (Profile > Wallet).
When you find an e-scooter, near you, you tap the button to unlock it.
The app asks you to snap a photo of the scooter’s QR code.
On your first rental, you may need to scan your driver’s license.
To start the e-scooter, step on, kick forward, then push the throttle button.
You press down on the right to accelerate and squeeze brake on the left.
When done, park by a bike rack and don’t block public pathways.
To end the ride, open the app and tap the button to lock the scooter.
The app will show you the ride time cost.
Go here to see Lime’s tutorial.

Spin
Download the Spin app for iOS or Android.
Create a login with your email address or Facebook.
A map in the app will show you any nearby e-scooters.
Zoom in to see more detail - like each scooter’s battery charge.
Before you grab e-scooter, add your credit card (Profile > Account).
When you find an e-scooter, near you, you tap the button to scan it.
The app asks you to snap a photo of the scooter’s QR code.
On your first rental, you may need to scan your driver’s license.
To start the e-scooter, step on, kick forward, then push the throttle button.
You press down on the right to accelerate and squeeze brake on the left.
When done, park by a bike rack and don’t block public pathways.
To end the ride, open the app and tap the button to lock the scooter.
The app will show you the ride time cost.
Go here to see Spin’s tutorial.

Bolt
Download the Bolt app for iOS or Android.
Create a login with your email address.
A map in the app will show you any nearby e-scooters.
Zoom in to see more detail - like each scooter’s battery charge.
Before you grab e-scooter, add your credit card (Payment > Add new card).
When you find an e-scooter, near you, you tap go to navigate to it.
Hit the Ride button in the app and scan the scooter’s QR code.
To start the e-scooter, step on, kick forward, then push down the throttle button.
You press down on the right to accelerate and squeeze brake on the left.
When done, park by a bike rack and don’t block public pathways. The app will highlight areas you can’t park.
To end the ride, open the app and tap the button to lock the scooter.
The app will show you the ride time cost.
Can children use e-scooters?
No. You must be over the age of 18, have a valid driver’s license, and can only ride one person at a time.

How much does it cost to rent an e-scooter?
Bird: $1 plus 15 cents per minute
Lime: $1 plus 15 cents per minute
Spin: $1 plus 15 cents per minute
Bolt: $1 plus 15 cents per minute

They’re GPS/wifi connected so basically you pay 15 cents a minute to be tracked some more.

Figures it would be SanFran.

Do they have to be “e-scooters”? Who calls them e-scooters? We just call them scooters. Does this mean gas-powered scooters are OK?

The first time we encountered these types of scooters was in San Diego last summer. While walking on a sidewalk, we were nearly hit by one passing within inches of my right arm. They are dangerous, as the people who rent them don’t follow basic safety. After that first encounter, we have seen them flourish in many communities near us. They aren’t much regulated and the renters aren’t much cognisant of the pedestrians they are terrorizing.

Bird, Lime, Spin...sounds like diseases.

These stupid scooters are a disaster in Tel Aviv, which I visited last month. Half of the sidewalks on major boulevards have been given over to them. Visitors like myself (who have been to Israel many times) have no clue that this division has taken place until they are nearly run over, Nor do little children, like my four year-old Israeli cousin, understand that half of the sidewalk is no longer theirs. She was crashed into by one of these things which must have been going at least 20 mph. (not seriously hurt fortunately)

ML/NJ