What's Happening in Durham, NC…

Seeing the introduction of rentable electric scooters as something that is inevitable here, Durham City Council is working on an ordinance to regulate them to ensure scooter vendors can be held accountable and the public remains safe.

Durham will soon have the first ordinance dealing with electric scooters in the state. City Transportation Planner Bryan Poole explained that the city has benefited from the experiences of other cities that already have the scooters. The situation is the reverse of dockless bike shares, which Durham was one of the first cities in the U.S. to implement.

After passing the ordinance, the next step will be setting up a permit process. Scooters will not be allowed on Durham streets until they have met the permit requirements and have been issued a permit. A vote on the ordinance is to be held by the Durham City Council at its meeting on October 15.

To avoid confusion, many businesses providing dockless bikes and electric scooters choose to commission a flyer printing order to introduce the public to these transportation options.

Three vendors of electric scooters have already made contact with Durham officials. One reason for being cautious was to intercede before scooters eliminate the demand for dockless bikes, as it has in other cities.

Following the passing of the ordinance, it is anticipated that vendors will immediately apply for permits. However, it will be several weeks before the scooters are seen on Durham streets.