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Anecdotally, nobody likes these scooters and I can't imagine any normal person who isn't financially invested in their success would care when they leave. They

Anecdotally, nobody likes these scooters and I can't imagine any normal person who isn't financially invested in their success would care when they leave. They are a very dangerous and gimmicky mode of transportation in a nation where we could all use to walk much more than we do.

boc 4y ago
I loved them when they first arrived- cut my walking commute into downtown from 20 minutes to about 4 minutes, plus they are super fun to rip down hills and fast since you can lane split through traffic. I think of it like skiing- sure there’s a lot of potential risk but it’s a super enjoyable of getting around. Bird was the first scooter I ever rented when they launched in SF and I loved it. It was so much fun waiting at stoplights with other scooter riders next to you chatting and racing together to make the next light. Then the city threw all the birds in trucks one night and took away the fun. For a website that often complains about how mundane modern life has become, it’s ironic to see so much hate directed at a fun, novel way of moving around the city.
- 8ytecoder 4y ago
  It still exists for you- just buy one. People have been using “hoverboards” before bird and they’ll continue to do so. Bird wanted to profit but not take responsibility. They were completely reckless in 2018 and were very easy on their customers riding on sidewalk at full speed and not even providing a way to securely lock it. Then when the regulations came down, after the city saw how reckless they were being used, it’s going to be harsh, duh. If they were thoughtful or even took responsibility to correct some behavior they could have even sold this as transit for the poor and made the city pay them for the privilege of providing them with an option that public transit can’t match. They’d have come up with stations for them to store and retrieve. They’d have strictly banned users taking it to the sidewalk or unsafe use.
  - boc 4y ago
    Point to point transit is way different from riding to a bar and taking a Lyft home. Having my own scooter means lugging it indoors. It’s a hardware storage issue, really. I think e-bikes that dock in specific places will eventually be the end state. Everyone can ride a bike and people don’t seem to care about bike racks on the sidewalk.
- uberman 4y ago
  No one says it's not fun to ride one, but you dont throw the sky lift in the bay when you are done for the day. The issue is no one not even Bird or apparently their investors care about the hard ware at all. In a rush for market dominance the scooters are disposable and riders treat them a such.
xkcd-sucks 4y ago
Anecdotally, some people really loved them as a source of raw materials
Zak 4y ago
I like them. I am not (to my knowledge) financially invested in them. I live in a major European city. Cars don't make sense for most trips because parking is limited both naturally by population density and artificially by policy. Public transit is crowded, and there are several airborne viruses of concern going around. I got a quote to insure my bike against theft when locked up in public and concluded it is very likely to be stolen. Bike rentals with parking stations are inconvenient because the stations often aren't where I want to go, and the bikes are very heavy/slow with airless tires. So I use scooters somewhat often. I used them more when there were subscription plans that were effectively unlimited use for a month for a flat fee.
fidgewidge 4y ago
Anecdotally, where I live they are popular especially in the summer and lots of people ride them. I've used them a lot, always enjoyed it and hope they stick around. But I live outside the USA and in a city where we have literal cargo trains that roll down the street in places where there are pedestrians, so the idea scooters are dangerous in comparison seems silly.

boc 4y ago

I loved them when they first arrived- cut my walking commute into downtown from 20 minutes to about 4 minutes, plus they are super fun to rip down hills and fast since you can lane split through traffic. I think of it like skiing- sure there’s a lot of potential risk but it’s a super enjoyable of getting around. Bird was the first scooter I ever rented when they launched in SF and I loved it. It was so much fun waiting at stoplights with other scooter riders next to you chatting and racing together to make the next light. Then the city threw all the birds in trucks one night and took away the fun. For a website that often complains about how mundane modern life has become, it’s ironic to see so much hate directed at a fun, novel way of moving around the city.

8ytecoder 4y ago
It still exists for you- just buy one. People have been using “hoverboards” before bird and they’ll continue to do so. Bird wanted to profit but not take responsibility. They were completely reckless in 2018 and were very easy on their customers riding on sidewalk at full speed and not even providing a way to securely lock it. Then when the regulations came down, after the city saw how reckless they were being used, it’s going to be harsh, duh. If they were thoughtful or even took responsibility to correct some behavior they could have even sold this as transit for the poor and made the city pay them for the privilege of providing them with an option that public transit can’t match. They’d have come up with stations for them to store and retrieve. They’d have strictly banned users taking it to the sidewalk or unsafe use.
- boc 4y ago
  Point to point transit is way different from riding to a bar and taking a Lyft home. Having my own scooter means lugging it indoors. It’s a hardware storage issue, really. I think e-bikes that dock in specific places will eventually be the end state. Everyone can ride a bike and people don’t seem to care about bike racks on the sidewalk.
uberman 4y ago
No one says it's not fun to ride one, but you dont throw the sky lift in the bay when you are done for the day. The issue is no one not even Bird or apparently their investors care about the hard ware at all. In a rush for market dominance the scooters are disposable and riders treat them a such.

xkcd-sucks 4y ago

Anecdotally, some people really loved them as a source of raw materials

Zak 4y ago

I like them. I am not (to my knowledge) financially invested in them. I live in a major European city. Cars don't make sense for most trips because parking is limited both naturally by population density and artificially by policy. Public transit is crowded, and there are several airborne viruses of concern going around. I got a quote to insure my bike against theft when locked up in public and concluded it is very likely to be stolen. Bike rentals with parking stations are inconvenient because the stations often aren't where I want to go, and the bikes are very heavy/slow with airless tires. So I use scooters somewhat often. I used them more when there were subscription plans that were effectively unlimited use for a month for a flat fee.

fidgewidge 4y ago

Anecdotally, where I live they are popular especially in the summer and lots of people ride them. I've used them a lot, always enjoyed it and hope they stick around. But I live outside the USA and in a city where we have literal cargo trains that roll down the street in places where there are pedestrians, so the idea scooters are dangerous in comparison seems silly.