Montreal to fine Lime, Jump and their users for bad parking of e-scooters and e-bikes
If riders are caught parking scooters and bikes outside zones, they will be fined $50
The City of Montreal says too many e-scooters are being badly parked and it will begin fining riders caught leaving them outside designated spaces.
The new fines will also apply to users of Jump, the electric bicycles operated by Uber. Both Jump and the Lime e-scooters were launched this summer as part of pilot projects.
Part of the conditions, in the case of Lime scooters, is that they must be parked in the 239 designated zones drawn by the city. Jump bikes must be parked at city-sanctioned bike stands, such as the rings on parking meters.
Friday morning, the City of Montreal held a news conference to provide an update on how the pilot projects are going and announced the fines, which are effective immediately.
If the person parking is caught in the act, they will get a ticket. If not, the ticket is issued to Lime.
—@sarahleavittcbcIf a Lime scooter or Jump bike isn't parked properly, but city inspectors don't see the user responsible, they will fine the companies directly.
The fines are $50 for users and $100 for the companies.
Until now, the city had been giving the companies two hours to send staff to park the bikes and scooters properly — but no more.
In an emailed statement, Lime said it was "eager to continue partnering" with Montreal.
"We remain committed to continuing to educate users on proper parking and ensuring scooters continue to be a valuable addition to the Montreal community," the statement said.
Both Jump and Lime's offer has proved popular so far, with Jump averaging 1,702 trips per day and Lime, 1,570.
Bird, another e-scooter company, wants to add another 200 scooters to Montreal streets. The company received a permit, but hasn't yet launched its service.
The city says it won't be issuing any more permits this year. The pilot projects end Nov. 15, the day Bixis disappear for the winter.
With files from Sarah Leavitt