Auckland Council has selected two providers to receive new rental micromobility licences in Auckland.
Of the seven licence applications received, the chosen providers are current operator Lime and the New Zealand-owned Flamingo. Both will be licensed for a two-year period from 4 November 2024.
Auckland Council’s Manager of Licensing and Environmental Health, Mervyn Chetty, says the council received a number of strong applications, with the chosen providers demonstrating a commitment to safety initiatives and reducing nuisance.
“Both Lime and Flamingo have a history of operating in Auckland and around New Zealand. Their applications represented the best offering for Aucklanders, with both committing to a range of initiatives to support public transport connections, improved parking and safer riding.”
“We look forward to continuing our relationship with Lime and welcoming back Flamingo, which currently operates in a number of New Zealand cities and has been licenced in Auckland previously.”
Fewer operators but allocations the same
The current e-scooter allocation in Auckland is 3000 in total, with 900 in tier 1 (city centre), 900 in tier 2 (city fringe) and 1200 in tier 3 (suburban). This allocation will remain the same from November 4, but with the allocation split across the two providers.
“Having just two operators allows riders to easily find a device with their preferred provider, as well as allowing us to monitor and work with providers more closely,” says Mr Chetty.
Lime and Flamingo will each be allowed 900 devices split across tiers 1 and 2. In tier 3, Lime will have 700 devices and Flamingo will have 500.
Rental Micromobility Code of Practice
Throughout the current licensing period the council has identified improvements that can be made to the Rental Micromobility Code of Practice to better manage operator compliance and influence user behaviour.
Changes to the rental micromobility code of practice will include:
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Faster response times required to rectify non-compliant parking, reduced from 90 to 75 minutes in tier 1 (city centre) and tier 2 (city fringe).
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Faster response times to rectify toppled scooters, reduced from 90 to 75 minutes in tiers 1 and 2.
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Strengthened data provisions.
E-bikes
From 4 November the council will no longer license rental e-bikes. Previous e-bike licences saw a low number of trips, with operators having removed all rental e-bike devices from the streets.
Operators have committed to work with Auckland Council and Auckland Transport to develop a strategy to successfully bring rental e-bikes back to Tāmaki Makaurau.
Assessment of applications
Applications were assessed against the requirements of the Public Trading, Events and Filming Bylaw 2022 and Auckland Transport’s Activities in the Road Corridor Bylaw 2022, and were considered to ensure that the applicants could demonstrate their ability to comply with the Rental Micromobility Code of Practice (version 3).
Find out more
Visit the council’s micromobility web page to find out more about rental e-scooters in Auckland.
