Lime e-scooter rollout set to continue in Australia

The electric scooter wars are coming, with urban mobility company Lime revealing a new model – the Gen 3 – ahead of its local debut.

The new Lime-S Gen 3 share scooter boasts bigger wheels, mountain bike-inspired front suspension, an aluminium frame, increased battery life and an extended life cycle of six months.

According to the company, one big advance is the 2.8-inch colour dashboard display to instruct riders where to park based on GPS co-ordinates, how to ride their scooter safely, and the laws they need to be aware of.

The company launched its scooter program in Brisbane, Queensland, about six months ago, and it has already seen more than one million rides over that time. The company doesn’t have any e-scooters in other cities yet, but the e-bikes in Sydney have seen more than 500,000 rides since late 2018.

The company’s APAC director of government strategy, Mitchell Price, says the company is eager to see the new Gen 3 electric push-scooters present in other markets outside Brisbane, but there are some legislative barriers in different states.

“We’re continuing to see positive uptake of our electric bikes in Sydney and scooters in Brisbane, and hope to expand our service across Australia,” said Mr Price.

“Lime is relentless in pushing the boundaries of innovation and will continue to iterate models and improve features based on rider and Juicer feedback to ensure we can offer the most comfortable, durable, and safest scooter on the market,” said Mr Price.

As we reported previously, US-based competitor Bird is set to drop its own e-scooters on Australian streets soon, as that company has advertised for an Australian general manager.