OP
@seamus26 avatar
UTC

Ossessionato
1979 P200E (sold) / ZNEN Amore 150 (sold) / Genuine Buddy 170i / Genuine Stella 4T /Aprilia Sportcity One 50
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Posts: 2744
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
 
Ossessionato
@seamus26 avatar
1979 P200E (sold) / ZNEN Amore 150 (sold) / Genuine Buddy 170i / Genuine Stella 4T /Aprilia Sportcity One 50
Joined: UTC
Posts: 2744
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
UTC quote
Father And Son Pull 200+ Electric Scooters From Lansing River

External inline image provided by member with no explanatory text
Quote:
Goin' Fishing

I was browsing Reddit the other day and came across a pretty wild post over on the r/magnetfishing subreddit from a gentleman who revealed he "accidentally got e-scooters banned in my state in 3 days...". This is a bit of an exaggeration, but there's no denying that Xan DuLow and his dad Cal found a s*** ton of scooters.

In case you've never heard of magnet fishing, it's similar to regular fishing but instead of using bait to catch fish, these fishers throw a powerful magnet into the water and hope to find lost relics in bodies of water. In this case, they were fishing in the Red Cedar River.

The photos are jaw-dropping, but the video of the duo finding all these scooters is even more crazy. Lowing says that these scooters could weigh "over 100 pounds each" which makes it difficult when you're "pulling at least 30 out a day". Shockingly, there were some they pulled from the river that still held a charge.

While the claim that these magnet fishers were the cause of the ban is a bit exaggerated, the number of scooters in the rivers did play a role in the electric scooter company Spin being banned from East Lansing. The company also filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy which played a role in the ban. Mayor Brookover was quoted saying

Though the scooters are banned from the City, Spin will still be allowed at Michigan State University due to a pre-existing partnership between the two.
External inline image provided by member with no explanatory text
UTC

Hooked
Stella
Joined: UTC
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Location: USA
 
Hooked
Stella
Joined: UTC
Posts: 122
Location: USA
UTC quote
I just have to wonder why even a thief would think throwing them in the water was a good idea.
@daleb avatar
UTC

Hooked
'55 VL1
Joined: UTC
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Location: Omaha, NE
 
Hooked
@daleb avatar
'55 VL1
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Location: Omaha, NE
UTC quote
redstella wrote:
I just have to wonder why even a thief would think throwing them in the water was a good idea.
Because by definition they're generally stupid and don't care about anything other than their immediate desires and entertainment?
UTC

Molto Verboso
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Molto Verboso
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UTC quote
nope
⚠️ Last edited by skids on UTC; edited 1 time
@znomit avatar
UTC

Veni, Vidi, Posti
LX190 Friday afternoon special, [s]Primavera[/s], S50, too many pushbikes
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Location: Hermit Kingdom
 
Veni, Vidi, Posti
@znomit avatar
LX190 Friday afternoon special, [s]Primavera[/s], S50, too many pushbikes
Joined: UTC
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Location: Hermit Kingdom
UTC quote
DaleB wrote:
Because by definition they're generally stupid and don't care about anything other than their immediate desires and entertainment?
The thief or the e-scooter rider?
@petercc avatar
UTC

Molto Verboso
Piaggio Beverly 300 ie - 2012
Joined: UTC
Posts: 1380
Location: Belgium
 
Molto Verboso
@petercc avatar
Piaggio Beverly 300 ie - 2012
Joined: UTC
Posts: 1380
Location: Belgium
UTC quote
Reminds me of my time as a student at the Louvain University back in the 80's.
Several times a year the Dijle river that is running through the city was being dredged and always a lot of bicycles were fished out.
Why had they been thrown in? Nobody knows. Most probably just for fun?
@motovista avatar
UTC

Veni, Vidi, Posti
GT 200
Joined: UTC
Posts: 9277
Location: Main Street, Watts
 
Veni, Vidi, Posti
@motovista avatar
GT 200
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Location: Main Street, Watts
UTC quote
There are a lot of magnet fishing videos on Youtube where they pull broken safes out of the Thames and other rivers in the UK. People get excited when they realize they snagged a safe, then not so excited when they see that someone broke into it before disposing of the evidence.
UTC

Hooked
Stella
Joined: UTC
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Location: USA
 
Hooked
Stella
Joined: UTC
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Location: USA
UTC quote
So these scooters are all rental units?
Seems odd to protest them but I wouldn't live in an urban area anyway- I guess that's my protest.
@steelbytes avatar
UTC

Veni, Vidi, Posti
2019 GTS 300 HPE SuperTech 70,000km
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Location: Batmania aka Melbourne, Aus
 
Veni, Vidi, Posti
@steelbytes avatar
2019 GTS 300 HPE SuperTech 70,000km
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Location: Batmania aka Melbourne, Aus
UTC quote
redstella wrote:
So these scooters are all rental units?
Seems odd to protest them but I wouldn't live in an urban area anyway- I guess that's my protest.
Protest can be against the clutter from idiots leaving then parked in the middle of narrow footpaths. A common frustration here.
@motovista avatar
UTC

Veni, Vidi, Posti
GT 200
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Location: Main Street, Watts
 
Veni, Vidi, Posti
@motovista avatar
GT 200
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Location: Main Street, Watts
UTC quote
Do they need any help putting them back in the river?

Anybody who doesn't understand the motivation for throwing them in the nearest large body of water should spend a couple of evenings walking downtown in any city where they are widely available. Then you will figure out why Paris banned them.
OP
@seamus26 avatar
UTC

Ossessionato
1979 P200E (sold) / ZNEN Amore 150 (sold) / Genuine Buddy 170i / Genuine Stella 4T /Aprilia Sportcity One 50
Joined: UTC
Posts: 2744
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
 
Ossessionato
@seamus26 avatar
1979 P200E (sold) / ZNEN Amore 150 (sold) / Genuine Buddy 170i / Genuine Stella 4T /Aprilia Sportcity One 50
Joined: UTC
Posts: 2744
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
UTC quote
We have them in Grand Rapids. Lime was the service of choice. there have been lots of issues. People do not understand how they are supposed to be used.

This from Lime's website :
Quote:
The vehicles have their speeds capped and won't allow you to go dangerously fast. However, always respect the rules of the road and be mindful of pedestrians or other vehicles. Always try to ride on the bike lanes when available, or on the road.
City ordinances prohibit riding on sidewalks within city limits. People ignore that.
Quote:
We always recommend that you wear a helmet when riding Lime vehicles. In some cities, it is mandatory.
I rarely see anyone wearing a helmet while riding either the scooters or bikes.

From the GR Ride Share website :
Quote:
Lime fees for both the stand-on e-scooters and e-assist bicycles are $1 to unlock plus 30 cents per minute.
15mph flat out is a 4 minute mile. That is a cost of $1.20/mile. Plus $1 to unlock. It costs me less to drive our Toyota Tundra. A lot less.

Granted, there are discounts for some people. Also from GR's website :
Quote:
The Neighborhoods of Focus(PDF, 2MB) consist of 17 Census Tracts with higher poverty, higher unemployment and lower rates of educational attainment than elsewhere in the City. They were originally determined in 2016 by research funded by the Kellogg Foundation.

The program service area covers 74% of the Neighborhoods of Focus. For those residents living in Neighborhoods of Focus and throughout the city meeting certain income requirements, user fees are 50% of the standard fees.

To be eligible for discounted rates, provide proof of enrollment in city, state, or federally funded programs such as SNAP EBT, TANF, WIC, and HUD Housing Choice Section 8 Vouchers.
And people are lazy. They leave them on sidewalks and even in the street when they are done with them.

The other issue is people don't require any experience. They are notoriously bad riders. In traffic or on sidewalks.

Just a lot of perceived benefit that really isn't. Besides, we're in Michigan. The amount of fair weather we have for scootering and cycling doesn't really lend well to managing the whole system throughout the winter.
UTC

Hooked
Stella
Joined: UTC
Posts: 122
Location: USA
 
Hooked
Stella
Joined: UTC
Posts: 122
Location: USA
UTC quote
Well if no one likes them they won't be around long. Though I don't think vandalism is the answer.
UTC

Hooked
2005 Vespa GT200
Joined: UTC
Posts: 128
Location: San clemente ca
 
Hooked
2005 Vespa GT200
Joined: UTC
Posts: 128
Location: San clemente ca
UTC quote
If I found them I would do the right thing and recycle them properly and put money in my own pocket more than likely it was who ever owned them that dumped them and not thieves water can hide a lot of stuff for a long time !
@jimc avatar
UTC

Moderaptor
The Hornet (GT200, aka Love Bug) and 'Dimples' - a GTS 300
Joined: UTC
Posts: 44675
Location: Pleasant Hill, CA
 
Moderaptor
@jimc avatar
The Hornet (GT200, aka Love Bug) and 'Dimples' - a GTS 300
Joined: UTC
Posts: 44675
Location: Pleasant Hill, CA
UTC quote
Nitro200 wrote:
If I found them I would do the right thing and recycle them properly and put money in my own pocket more than likely it was who ever owned them that dumped them and not thieves water can hide a lot of stuff for a long time !
I doubt that - these look like they were all 'For Hire' e-scooters. The hire company as owners wouldn't dump them!

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