SAN DIEGO — Scooter companies are having a hard time operating in San Diego with the new stricter rules that went into effect at the beginning of August.
Scooters now must have technology that keeps them off sidewalks and parked inside painted corrals.
Bird notifies the rider when they go into prohibited areas.
It came as a surprise to Jocelyn Ma. "It was beeping and when we checked that app it gave us a message about the zones," she said.
The city reduced the number of operators allowed from seven to four. Bird, Spin, Lime and Link all got the green light.
"What we've seen so far in the first three weeks is three of the scooter companies have withdrawn while they've worked on their technology. Bird is the only one that's been out there this last week," said Janet Rogers, Co-Chair of Safe Walkways SD.
CBS 8 reached out to the companies. Lime said the new requirements are stricter than any other city in the world and caused an unnecessary disruption of service. Without the proper technology, Lime and Link said they've paused operations in San Diego.
For now, this means fewer scooters. "That's good. Can we get rid of all of them permanently?" said one San Diegan.
However, it's not good news for everyone. "I know they're very useful so, if they take them off the streets it can make it very inconvenient," said Michael Sanders, a San Diego native.
Bird now requires riders to scan an area with their phone when parking the scooter. This ensures it's left in the designated parking corrals.
You can find a list of scooter corrals in the city of San Diego here.
WATCH RELATED: San Diego changes scooter and e-bike laws, caps amount allowed (May 2022)