Up to 100 Lime-S electric scooters hit the streets of Bothell Friday as part of a 90-day pilot program to test scooter sharing.
The scooters will be available at drop-off locations throughout downtown Bothell with two to four scooters at each location, according to the city.
Bothell City Council approved the pilot in hopes of reducing congestion and offering residents environmentally-friendly alternatives for traveling.
Riders can unlock the e-scooters by using the Lime app to scan a QR code on the scooters. It costs $1 to unlock the scooter, plus 25 cents per minute. Participants in a government low-income program can sign up to pay 50 cents to unlock the scooters plus 7 cents per minute.
In late 2017, the city worked with Lime to bring manual bike-share to Bothell, but the plan was scrapped after the city says Lime changed its business model to focus on motorized scooters and e-bikes.
Bothell is one of several cities in Washington to deploy free-floating e-scooters. Tacoma launched its program last year, and Everett began a pilot program in May. Spokane signed a contract with Lime this spring after completing a pilot program last fall.
They may also be coming to Seattle. The city re-opened conversations about adding electric scooters in May after previously putting the brakes on scooter-sharing.
At the end of Bothell’s scooter pilot program, city council will determine if it wants to continue with e-scooters. Residents can submit feedback online or by calling or texting Lime customer service at 1-888-546-3345.