4 ms·

>As part of the pilot, up to five qualified companies could be issued permits to operate shared, motorized scooters in San Francisco So essentially if you're n

>As part of the pilot, up to five qualified companies could be issued permits to operate shared, motorized scooters in San Francisco So essentially if you're not fast or well connected enough to get one of those permits then you're shit out of luck? What happens if a company scooter-sharing hurts gets one of those permits to sit on? Why did this industry need a limited pilot in the first place??

ChuckMcM 8y ago
We'll call them "Scooter Medallions" and they will be an investment property!
cblock811 8y ago
Because the scooters were already clogging sidewalks and aggravating people. The limit prevents that. Otherwise VC's will invest in ten of these companies like lemmings, kind of like how we have so many food deliver apps. At least this way we'll only have five. This doesn't seem too crazy to me but maybe that's just me.
dsfyu404ed 8y ago
"If you're California you regulate stuff. It's what you do" <insert car insurance sales pitch here> Why couldn't the city couldn't just impound and auction scooters, bikes, skateboards, shopping carts that are parked illegally? They almost certainly can do this under one of the bajillion existing statutes. Don't want you crap stolen by the government, don't let your users park it in dumb places. As I understand it riding a scooter on the sidewalk is already illegal. I don't see how this is any different from bike sharing other than the form factor making them more tempting to ride on the sidewalk.
JumpCrisscross 8y ago
> Why did this industry need a limited pilot in the first place? "I've been having chuck steak ever since I've been on the force,' declared Alexander 'Clubber' Williams of the New York Police Department in 1876. 'Now I'm going to have a bit of tenderloin.'" https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/non_fictionreviews/3670673/New-Yorks-less-than-tenderloin.html https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/non_fictionreviews...
danso 8y ago
Generally pilot programs have a limited scope. Presumably, one of the business advantages of being allowed in the pilot is to establish awareness and a customer base before the market is completely open. Doesn’t seem like there’s much advantage to just sitting around during that time.
conanbatt 8y ago
Uber is awaiting the official sale of medallions to not purchse it and put scooters at cheaper prices.

ChuckMcM 8y ago

We'll call them "Scooter Medallions" and they will be an investment property!

cblock811 8y ago

Because the scooters were already clogging sidewalks and aggravating people. The limit prevents that. Otherwise VC's will invest in ten of these companies like lemmings, kind of like how we have so many food deliver apps. At least this way we'll only have five. This doesn't seem too crazy to me but maybe that's just me.

dsfyu404ed 8y ago

"If you're California you regulate stuff. It's what you do" <insert car insurance sales pitch here> Why couldn't the city couldn't just impound and auction scooters, bikes, skateboards, shopping carts that are parked illegally? They almost certainly can do this under one of the bajillion existing statutes. Don't want you crap stolen by the government, don't let your users park it in dumb places. As I understand it riding a scooter on the sidewalk is already illegal. I don't see how this is any different from bike sharing other than the form factor making them more tempting to ride on the sidewalk.

JumpCrisscross 8y ago

> Why did this industry need a limited pilot in the first place? "I've been having chuck steak ever since I've been on the force,' declared Alexander 'Clubber' Williams of the New York Police Department in 1876. 'Now I'm going to have a bit of tenderloin.'" https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/non_fictionreviews/3670673/New-Yorks-less-than-tenderloin.html https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/non_fictionreviews...

danso 8y ago

Generally pilot programs have a limited scope. Presumably, one of the business advantages of being allowed in the pilot is to establish awareness and a customer base before the market is completely open. Doesn’t seem like there’s much advantage to just sitting around during that time.

conanbatt 8y ago

Uber is awaiting the official sale of medallions to not purchse it and put scooters at cheaper prices.