Lime bikes will be sticking around on the North Shore – for another six months, at least.
City of North Vancouver council voted unanimously to extend the contract with the micromobility service operator just long enough for the city, along with the District of North Vancouver, District of West Vancouver and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) to carry out a competitive process for new potential businesses to take over and expand the service.
Lime has been running its e-bike rental service on the North Shore for four years. Without the extension, that contract was due to expire at the end of this year.
One of the objectives staff have in mind over the medium-term is agreements with the City of Vancouver and micromoblity operators there that would allow users to cross the North Shore’s bridges and dock their bikes on the other side. In the longer term, TransLink has expressed interest in overseeing a microbility service that extends across the entire region, according to city staff.
While that work is being done on the selection of a new contractor by the summer of 2025, staff will also be investigating the potential to add an e-scooter share program to the North Shore, similar to the one Lime recently launched in East Vancouver.
When it comes to the possibility of introducing e-scooters, Mayor Linda Buchanan said she would much prefer a model that requires users to leave the scooters in docks or specially marked zones.
“Having been in many multiple cities where there is no docking, I do find that they tend to be scattered throughout and not well maintained,” she said.
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