Lime e-scooters could be introduced in suburban areas of Auckland to speed up commuter journeys to and from the bus and train.
The prospect of more Lime scooters on the streets follows an announcement today that Auckland Council is extending the company's trial licence for 10 weeks to the end of March.
Lime's Hank Rowe said the company was in early discussions with the council about introducing scooters in commuting suburbs for the "first and last mile" between home and public transport.
They are quite fun and have a role to play in Auckland, but put them in the right place with the right set of conditions
Since October, Lime has put about 1000 scooters in downtown Auckland and the inner city suburbs.
Auckland Council chief operating officer Dean Kimpton said the council was open to allowing more scooters on city streets during the trial licence period or any future licence.
"But before we make that decision we want to understand how they will manage them from a safety perspective and how they will manage the redistribution of Lime scooters so they will use other centres outside the central city area," he said.
Kimpton said the objective of getting scooters into the outer area to deal with the last mile transport from the home to a transport hub so riders can catch the train or bus into the city.
Suburbs where the scooters could be introduced include Birkenhead, Northcote, Manukau, Henderson and Orewa.
Rowe said the number of trips being clocked up by its scooters in Auckland had been "phenomenal" and consistently in the top five markets for Lime globally.
About 75 per cent of the scooters do five or more trips a day and most others do between two and four trips. Just 1 or 2 per cent do one trip a day, he said.
The decision to extend Lime's licence was taken earlier today by the council's licensing and regulatory compliance team, together with Auckland Transport.
Once the trial period is over, a review with input from councillors will determine whether e-scooters will become a permanent fixture on the city's streets.
To address safety concerns over the e-scooters, Kimpton said there will be an ambassador programme to better manage the distribution of Lime scooters, parking scooters in popular locations and helping people understand safe riding practices.
There could also be pop-up opportunities for demonstrations, safety training and giveaways. These initiatives will be paid for by Lime.
Auckland Transport chief executive Shane Ellison said AT and the council support innovation and development across all modes of transport, saying the trial recognised the increasing popularity of electric scooters.
"Electric bikes, privately owned e-scooters and now ride-sharing options are becoming more popular in world-class cities everywhere," he said.
There have been 655 e-scooter ACC injury claims since the e-scooters launched in Auckland in October last year and later in Christchurch and the Hutt Valley. The cost of injuries to date is $228,364.
Earlier this week, Mayor Phil Goff said Lime e-scooters had been incredibly popular with most people riding them responsibly - but there had been some cases of reckless and irresponsible use causing crashes and accident compensation claims.
Under road user rules, e-scooters are allowed to be used on the footpath, separated cycleway shared paths and on the road. They cannot be used in on-road cycleways, unless they are impeding road traffic.
While the rules do not require e-scooter riders to wear a helmet, NZ Transport Agency strongly recommends that helmets are worn for safety.
Goff has welcomed the e-scooters as an alternative means of getting around the city, but has raised concerns with Transport Minister Phil Twyford about changing the rules to allow scooters in cycleways and the need for a speed limit.
He favours a speed limit of 10km/h. Helmets - not legally required and currently only seen in Lime publicity shots - could also be on the agenda.
Auckland councillors Chris Fletcher and Sharon Stewart are also calling for measures to regulate the use of e-scooters on the city's streets.
Fletcher
was nearly knocked off her feet by a Lime rider
outside the Auckland Town Hall on October 25, prompting Goff to order a safety probe by council officials.
"They are quite fun and have a role to play in Auckland, but put them in the right place with the right set of conditions," said Fletcher, who supports a 10km/h speed limit.
The safety report sought by Goff, information from the trial, input from ACC, NZTA, Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) and Christchurch City Council, will be packaged for councillors to decide whether to continue issuing licences for e-scooter providers.
In Auckland, Lime has paid the council $3326 for its initial trial licence to January 14 and $2644 to extend it until March 31. The council does not receive any share of the company's income or profits.
In Christchurch, the council has charged Lime $136 for a permit to operate up to 700 e-scooters from October 15 last year to the end of February.
Meanwhile Lime e-scooters have launched in Dunedin today.
Unlike in Christchurch and Auckland, Lime would not be paying a fee to operate in the city, as it did not require a permit.
Lime city launcher Matt McNeill said safety was a key concern for the company and it had signed a memorandum of understanding with the Dunedin City Council which focused on safety and customer service.
About 300 scooters would be available from 11am today and the company would review whether more were needed, McNeill said.
The company has hired about 30 employees, both full-time and part-time, to run the service in the city.
At first the company would focus on the central city, tertiary precinct and areas such as the city's beaches.
A council spokeswoman said it was not planning on restricting the use of the scooters in the city and would work collaboratively with the company.
The council had also discussed the launch of the service with Dunedin police.
Three two-storey units are reported to be well alight.