Birds will be scooting around more of the Queen City starting Friday, June 23.
The City of Springfield reached an agreement with Bird, an e-scooter rental company, for Bird to expand its boundaries of operation and nearly double the number of scooters in use.
“We have seen much greater e-scooter ridership than we anticipated, with more than 30,000 rental rides since Bird launched in fall of 2022,” Grady Porter, Springfield traffic engineer, said in a press release. “This comes with a small number of formal complaints that the City and Bird have addressed quickly. So far, we have only seen one reported crash involving a rented e-scooter.”
New boundaries provide alternate mode of transportation to services and amenities
Bird launched in Springfield in September of 2022. The operating boundaries roughly encompassed Missouri State University as well as the downtown and Commercial Street districts. The new boundaries extend roughly from Kearney Street to the north to Cherokee Street to the south; and from Glenstone Avenue to the east to Kansas Expressway to the west.
A total of 100 scooters will be deployed on city right-of-way, up from 55 at the initial launch.
Potter added that the expansion area will provide an alternate mode of transportation to places like Mercy Hospital’s main campus, Bass Pro Shops and the Grant Avenue Parkway, as well as other services and amenities.
The City of Springfield and Bird are still determining designated scooter deployment locations within the expanded boundaries.
Bird is responsible for maintaining, collecting devices
The City of Springfield established regulations for electric scooters and other micro-mobility devices on public right of way and updated the City Code in the summer of 2021.
E-scooters are limited to specific areas of Springfield using geofencing technology, which utilizes GPS technology to establish a physical boundary devices will recognize. Once a device is taken outside of the geofenced area, devices are programmed to shut off and will no longer operate.
Scooter companies are required to maintain their devices and collect them if they’re left in places where they may endanger the traveling public. Each scooter provides contact information on the stem of the device, which includes a phone number to contact the company directly with any concerns.
Bird is currently the only scooter company licensed to rent or deploy on City right-of-way. To contact Bird, call 1-866-205-2442 or email springfield-311@bird.co.
Safety tips for e-scooter riders
All operators of e-scooters are advised to follow all rules and regulations that are enforceable by law in the City of Springfield, including:
- Every person operating an E-Scooter on city streets shall wear protective headgear
- A valid driver’s license is required to operate an e-scooter
- E-scooter operators must yield the right of way to pedestrians and shall give an audible signal before overtaking and passing a pedestrian
- E-scooters will be limited to 15 mph in all areas and 10 mph on greenway trails using geofencing technology. However, operators will be responsible to limit their speeds on sidewalks, where allowed, to no greater than 5 mph
- E-scooters are not allowed to operate on roadways that have a speed limit greater than 30 mph
- E-scooter companies are required to stop rentals at 10 p.m. each night. If the rental occurs before 10 p.m., the rental will not be terminated until the ride has ended
- For areas outside of the downtown and Commercial Street business districts, no person shall park a micro-mobility device on a street rather than on the roadway against the curb; on the sidewalk in a rack, dock or storage area; or against the building or at the curb in such manner as to afford the least obstruction to pedestrian traffic
For more information on e-scooters in Springfield, visit the city’s website.
