BRENTWOOD, Tenn (WTVF) — Scooters are sidelined in Brentwood after the city commission voted unanimously Monday to ban scooter rental companies from dropping off the electric rides anywhere within city limits.
Right now, there are no scooter companies doing business in Brentwood, but City Manager Kirk Bednar says they have been spotted in the city.
But in downtown Nashville, there are thousands of scooters, operated by six companies. Tourists say they enjoy getting around Music City on them; but they won't get as far as Brentwood on the electric rides.
Bednar says the city could reconsider the ordinance in the future if city officials change their minds, but currently they see them as a hazard.
"Let’s get something on the books on the front end that prohibits them and as you hear discussed here it doesn’t mean we would never consider them," said Bednar.
In the agenda, this ban would also include bikes, scooters, electric bikes, and other small vehicles which are offered for short-term rentals and do not require a bicycle rack or docking station. The ordinance does not affect privately owned bikes or scooters.
"By being dockless they’re left all over the sidewalks creating a hazard for pedestrians, left in the road, so it’s a combination of really a safety concern and the fact without some regulation in place they end up being strewn everywhere and become a hazard," said Bednar.
If the city finds a company in violation of the law it could be fined $50.00 for each offense.
