E-Scooters Are Launching in Melbourne Next Month as Part of a One-Year Trial

If you've spent any chunk of time stuck in isolation these past couple of months, you're likely itching to get outside and recalibrate with some fresh air and open skies. And soon, you'll have a new option for zipping around outdoors, as two electric vehicle share companies gear up to launch a fleet of e-scooters on the streets of Melbourne.

One of them is US-born Lime, which first introduced its dockless electric bike share system across Melbourne and Sydney back in 2018, with its bright green e-scooters initially trialled in Brisbane. And, while the latter's rollout has experienced its fair share of hiccups since thanks to community complaints and issues with legislation, the company says Lime vehicles have hosted almost 11 million trips collectively in Australia and New Zealand to date.

Various e-scooter share companies currently operate in cities including Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra. Now, Melbourne's getting a fleet of its own, with Lime and Neuron Mobility selected to deliver a trial electric scooter share program across the City of Melbourne, City of Yarra and City of Port Phillip.

A Lime e-scooter

From February 1, the trial will see 1500 e-scooters hit local streets (750 from each company), in a bid to reignite some city buzz by providing punters with another eco-friendly and cost-effective way to travel. The vehicles will be available to rent via a smartphone app, able to ​​travel up to 20 kilometres per hour on bicycle lanes, shared paths and low speed roads. They won't be allowed on footpaths, however.

Riders will have to abide by most of the same rules as bike riders, and the scooters will use geofencing technology to enforce speed limits in some restricted areas. This system will also be used to help riders locate nearby vehicles and to scout out parking spots. You can brush up on Victoria's scooter road rules here.

The Victorian Government will use the 12-month trial to determine what a long-term city-wide electric scooter rollout might look like.

Of course, it's yet to be seen just how many of the new fleet will go the way of those countless ill-fated dockless share bikes back in 2017, that ended up wedged into trees and floating in the Yarra.

Lime and Neuron Mobility e-scooters will launch as a trial in City of Melbourne, City of Yarra and City of Port Phillip, from February 1.