FOX VALLEY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The future of Bird Scooters in some Fox Valley communities has stalled. While some are more than happy to welcome the electric scooters back, others not so much.
Bird Scooters are lined up and ready for riders in Neenah. A few years after initially welcoming the pay-as-you-go electric scooter program to town, city officials say they’re still on board.
“We’ve had, just in Neenah here, I think in our last year, we had almost 9,000 rides totaling more than 20,000 miles, so we are seeing usage here,” said Neenah’s Director of Community Development Chris Haese.
According to Haese, Neenah contracts with Bird, who does all the work. They bring the scooters to town, maintain them and then take them away for the winter.
The city, in exchange for hosting the scooters, receives a small payment — a percentage of each ride initiated in the city.
Haese said, “It’s not very much money at all, that’s not why we’re doing it. It was a way for us to provide another opportunity for our residents. and particularly our visitors to find their way around the community without having to be in a car.”
While Neenah is welcoming the scooters back, neighboring communities of Appleton and Menasha are keeping the Birds grounded — for now. Those cities are blacked out on the Bird app.
Appleton city officials tell FOX 11 several issues stalled negotiations to bring the scooters back this year.
Missed past payments and Bird filing for bankruptcy were two issues that have since been resolved, but were initially sticking points. But the city still has concerns with scooter parking and docking.
Appleton’s common council is supposed to discuss the scooter situation, again, at next week’s meeting. Meanwhile, FOX 11 learned Menasha is going to be reconsidering its position too.
After initially approving the scooters for this year, contingent on Appleton and Neenah bringing them back as well, city officials tell FOX 11 with Appleton in limbo, an alderman wants to revisit the idea.
The new proposal would be to bring the scooters back, in conjunction with Neenah, no matter what Appleton eventually decides to do.
Not all business owners are on board.
“To me, it makes the city look a little trashy. Especially when they’re done using them, they’re just plopping them down wherever and then they’ll sit there for a couple of days. I know that there’s trucks that go around and pick them up wherever they are, but you see them all over town,” said Kari Mulder, owner of Rusted Roost.
Menasha is expected to revisit the issue at its council meeting on Monday.
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