Electric scooters in BA

[MilHojas]

Rappi, a Colombian on-demand delivery company, in cooperation with Grin, a Mexican mobility startup, have started renting scooters in multiple locations in Buenos Aires.

Apparently, the price of a 10 minute ride is 95 pesos.

Do you think this a viable transportation option?

Grin reaches Argentina, partners with local businesses

Grin has officially reached Argentina where it intends to launch more scooters while also partnering with local businesses.

www.contxto.com

Cómo usar los monopatines Grin en Buenos Aires

Los monopatines eléctricos de Grin desembarcaron finalmente en Buenos Aires, la primera ciudad en recibirlos dentro de Argentina. ¿Necesito registro?

www.ovrik.com

 

[Fiscal]

Work great in LA, love them

 

[sts7049]

nice!

i tried these recently in the US. it's definitely much more convenient to be able to leave the scooter wherever you like (as long as it's a legal place to leave it). helmets were also not a law where i tried it, it appears that here they are mandatory. it's definitely smarter to wear a helmet here, although i think that will reduce significantly the usage.

 

[Batigol]

Do you ride these on the road or the pavement? Because I can see a few mishaps occurring whenever there's a tile missing or loose on the pavement, which is pretty often.

 

[Fiscal]

In downtown Los Ángeles you're not supposed to ride them on the sidewalk but everyone does. Of course the sidewalks the are usually well maintained and there are not that many pedestrians.

Here I've been tempted by the bright green ones but don't see how riding on the sidewalk is possible unless early in the morning when no one is out. And riding on the street seems dangerous given how aggressive driving is here.

 

[sts7049]

i thought the city said they were meant for bike lanes and streets, not sidewalks.

 

[London2Baires]

Yep, bike lanes and streets.

I wonder if the business model will work. From what I've read it's not profitable even in places like LA and London , so I can't see it working here.

It's a pity really, electric transportation in cities is certainly the way forward imo.

Guess we will have to wait and see!

Cheers!

 

[mmoon]

Love riding them in CA although they do make your bones rattle! It’s hard for me to imagine them working in BA for that reason and because of the even poorer state of roads and sidewalks. One problem in the SF Bay Area is that they’re getting stolen and trashed before each scooter becomes profitable. I guess that takes about 5 months of usage (can’t remember where I saw that data but it was recent). They’ve started using spiral locks to link them to poles so that random people can’t just pick them up off the street without an account. It will be interesting to see if it works long term. Seems like a great solution to get some cars off the streets for those short trips.

 

[London2Baires]

Love riding them in CA although they do make your bones rattle! It’s hard for me to imagine them working in BA for that reason and because of the even poorer state of roads and sidewalks. One problem in the SF Bay Area is that they’re getting stolen and trashed before each scooter becomes profitable. I guess that takes about 5 months of usage (can’t remember where I saw that data but it was recent). They’ve started using spiral locks to link them to poles so that random people can’t just pick them up off the street without an account. It will be interesting to see if it works long term. Seems like a great solution to get some cars off the streets for those short trips.

Yep, exactly right. If I recall correctly, the data given in a recent short documentary on the issue was that they need 5 months at current unit cost of roughly 500usd. This should come down to 3 months once they manufacture at 350. The thing is, right now the average life expectancy is only about a month due to wear and tear, vandalism, theft, etc.

It's a real pity. My daily ride is an eBoard, somewhat more high end, torquey, and manouverable than the scooters, but just as practicle for getting around. Far superior to a car, and even motorbike, in the majority of my city/suburb use cases. Not to mention far more ecologically responsible, cheaper, added excercize, and great fun!

As far as road conditions go; the bicycle lanes are pretty good for the most part, and if you take side roads and avoid major arteries it's not too bad. (Well, other than what seems like 70% of Argentine drivers texting, voice calling, or video calling while driving. *Facepalm* )

Cheers!