Places to Be, People to See…and Scooters to Ride!
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TL;DR (Too Long, Didn't Read)
WHAT IS IT: Lime electric scooters (owned by Uber)
WHERE TO FIND: Use their downloadable, free app to locate the closest scooter
HOW IT WORKS: Download the app. Add a debit/credit card. Scan the scooter's QR code to unlock the bike. Ride!
COST: $1 to unlock plus $0.29 per mile
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: moderate
MORE INFO: https://www.uber.com/us/en/ride/scooters/
Recently, my teenage daughter and I visited Washington, D.C. during her Spring Break. This was the third time that she and I have traveled to the nation's capital for a trip to the Smithsonian Museums...(self-proclaimed nerds and proud of it).
The last time we had visited D.C. was back in 2019. A lot has changed since then including a global pandemic, renovations being made to a few of our fave museums, and a lovely knee surgery of mine last summer.
It was a chilly four days. After battling the blustery winds and bone-chilling cold, we made the executive decision to rent some electric scooters to expedite our 1.5 mile walk back to the hotel.
Now I’m aware that pay-per-ride, electric scooters have been popping up in downtown districts for the past few years. They’re a great addition to multi-modal transportation including walking, driving, using bike racks, electric vehicle charging stations, rapid transit stations.
I’m also aware you might be thinking that we had a few other easy options such as an Uber ride or taxi. We did. It would have been easy to reserve a ride or flag down a taxi driver.
But where is the ADVENTURE in that?
So my daughter and I walked up to a cluster of rentable scooters and bikes that were attached to a bike racks. We selected the Lime scooters, owned by Uber. With no research conducted prior to this impromptu decision firmly based on our quickly-decreasing internal temperatures, the scooters we selected were based on the following criteria:
They were available.
They looked pretty.
Very scientific, I know…
My daughter, KG, downloaded the Lime app (available wherever you get your apps) and laughed when the first screen prompted her through a brief safety briefing. As a recent Drivers Test graduate, she shared that the safety tips were very broad…
IMPORTANT SAFETY BREAK | Safety while riding scooters is important! It is strongly recommended that riders operate the scooters safely and responsibly, being mindful of traffic flow and City ordinances. Safety first!
Safety tips for riders:
Conduct a safety check of the scooter and take a test ride.
Wear a helmet.
Ride solo.
Do not drink and ride.
After vowing to adhere to local traffic rules, she linked my debit card, scanned the first scooter's QR code, and the scooter beep-beep-booped to let us know that it was releasing the bike lock. After my daughter unlocked my scooter - whom I named Bessie - it was time to embark on our inaugural adventure.
Immediately, KG scooted off into the distance as if she's been driving these since birth. I swelled with momma pride remarking to myself that she has become a strong, independent, and capable young woman who would take on the world.
With a full heart, it was time for me to go! No time like the present! Here we go!!
I tried.
And I tried again.
I stood there…dumbfounded…unable to make the damn thing GO.
Picture it: I'm standing on the side of the wide, gravel sidewalk on the picturesque Mall in Washington, D.C. with hundreds of on-lookers who I was convinced in this very moment were all staring at ME:
To my left? The Capitol Building.
To my right? The Washington Monument.
Directly in front of me? My personal pride laying on the ground.
I began laughing because, ya know, I own and run a successful company called For the Love of TECHNOLOGY, and here I couldn't figure out this stupid, worthless scooter. Bessie was really letting me down...
My daughter calmly scooted around after performing a perfect U-turn (seriously...she's been on this thing for 23.6 seconds) to assist her ailing mother.
"Yeah so you need to push off with your foot, and THEN press the throttle,” she calmly explains but the eye roll could be HEARD for miles…
Easy enough...if I had actually read the directions on the app.
And with that....we were off…Both of us!
After zooming around for a few minutes, I realized that I LOVED this. Unequivocally, without hesitation became an instant fan. I wondered why I had never tried it before as we took off toward the hotel.
The hotel was only about 1.5 miles from where we started, but I decided that it would be even MORE of an adventure if we took the long way back.
Narrator: With the wind blowing in her hair and the sun on her face, Mary got them lost.
Very, very lost.
So here's the part where I tell you about the "No Go" zones. You see, the Lime folks are brilliant. To ensure that their scooters don't end up in less-than-desirable locations (ie. highways, random parking lots, and the bottom of rivers), they program each scooter to just STOP WORKING in certain geo-fenced locations.
Not knowing this (please refer to chapter, "Mary Didn't Read the Instructions"), I assumed my battery died when Bessie just stopped moving. I had completley ignored the skull and cross bone warning* on the screen that was desperately trying to alert me that we had entered a "No Go" zone.
Lesson learned!
Once we manually Fred Flinstone’d our way out, things got back to normal. After a successful first ride, we rented Lime scooters for the rest of our trip. To be honest, I don’t have the words to describe how FUN these scooters are…you really need to try them out!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cost?
$1 to unlock + $0.29 per mile*
Our scooter adventures were usually between $12.50 - $25.00 (approx.) for both of us together
*at the time of publishing
Are they difficult to drive? Do you feel like you're going to fall off?
Not difficult at ALL...once you figure out how to make the damn things go. I felt very safe and secure. Note: It is always safest to wear a helmet.
On a scale of 1-10 (1 is “I’m a klutz” and 10 is “I’m super coordinated”), what skill level is needed to ride these things?
I’d say a 6 or 7.
How fast do they go?
Max speed is 45 mph. Just kidding - it's about 10 mph. Due to the terrain, amount of pedestrians, and our lack of experience, we usually were traveling around 5-8 mph.
How long does the battery last?
No clue, but there's a LCD display that shows you the battery life so you can check before you rent the scooter.
What do you do if you are in a “No Go” zone and your scooter stops working?
Just. Keep. Swimming. :) You’ll need to walk your scooter OR push it manually…which is actually a lot harder than you’d imagine.
Do you have to return them to a specific location?
No, as long as it is somewhere where you can lock it up.
How do you locate a Lime scooter?
You can search for nearby Lime scooters using their app.