Why Venice Beach is the Scooter Wars' Latest Battleground
*By Jacqueline Corba and Carlo Versano *
Venice Beach is the latest battleground in the scooter wars ー the polarizing mode of transport has most tourists excited but many locals groaning.
Bird and Lime seemed to launch overnight, taking the streets by storm and attracting enemies in city councils up and down the West Coast this summer. They both have billion-dollar-plus valuations.
It costs $1 to start a ride via an app, and 15 cents each minute. Scooters can go up to 15 mph, are tracked by GPS, and lock remotely so they can be left virtually anywhere. That is, indeed, part of the controversy.
[Social media accounts](https://www.instagram.com/birdgraveyard/) have spread just as quickly as the scooters themselves, documenting the "creative" ways they're parked, vandalized, and destroyed. The accounts are partially a response to the way in which these scooters were introduced ー suddenly and without any public input.
Regulators are scrambling to account for scooters in their mobility plans. Local lawmakers seem conflicted by emission-free, short-distance transport that's good for the environment but also poses a hazard to public safety.
Santa Monica, where Bird is headquartered, said last week that it's all for electric scooters on its streets ー just not those owned by Bird or Lime. Instead, city officials endorsed companies run by Uber and Lyft for its shared mobility pilot program which consists of e-bikes and scooters. The municipality will make its final determination on Aug. 30, and other cities are watching closely.
For Bird, the move was a slap in the face ー and from its hometown, no less. Both Bird and Lime [protested](http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-santa-monica-scooter-suspension-20180814-story.html) by shutting down their apps in the city for a day, while the companies' supporters [staged] (http://www.smdp.com/scooter-protest-descends-on-council-meeting-that-has-nothing-to-do-with-scooters/168572) a rally.
But just down the beach in Venice, scooters are very popular among tourists and commuters who flock to a neighborhood now known for both its tech start-ups and the famed Muscle Beach.
Sam Cooper, owner of the popular neighborhood cafe Great White, said the scooters are particularly welcome in an area known for its lack of parking.
But he does prefer Bird over Lime.
"You've got to support the locals," Cooper told Cheddar's Alyssa Julya Smith.
Retail platform operator and delivery company, Foxtrot,
raised $100 million in a Series C round led by D1 Capital Partners. Foxtrot bills itself as the modern convenience store that combines what it calls in-store curated discovery with 30-minute delivery and 5-minute pickup. Since launching first as a digital-only delivery service, the company has since grown into a popular local retailer, opening 16 brick and mortar locations across Chicago, Dallas, and Washington, DC. Foxtrot co-founder and CEO Michael LaVitola joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
A movie about the life of the late Betty White will premiere on what would have been her 100th birthday, January 17. The film will celebrate highlights from the trailblazer’s nearly eight-decade-long career.
Zogblog.com founder Zack O'Malley Greenburg joins Cheddar News to discuss his new Rolling Stone article, 'Nine of the 10 Highest-Paid Musicians of 2021 Were Men.'
Makena Kelly, politics reporter at The Verge, joins Cheddar News to discuss what's next for net neutrality as Biden's other nominee for the FCC, Gigi Sohn, awaits votes from the committee and Senate.
Food Network star Alex Guarnaschelli joined Cheddar's Baker Machado to dish on her new cooking competition show "Alex vs. America." The Iron Chef will be taking on three challengers at a time in a contest she hopes brings a unique look at the genre. "I think the reality of the show, the truth of those competitions, the grittiness, the waiting, the choices," said Guarnaschelli, listing what she hopes comes across from her show.
Jewell Jackson McCabe, chair of the Keep Love Alive Campaign and founder of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, and Marvin Owens, chief engagement officer of Impact Shares and former senior director of Economic Development at the NAACP, join Cheddar News to reflect on racial issues still prevalent in America.
Grocery stores are restricting hours and services due to omicron-related labor and supply chain issues. This also comes at a time of labor unrest for supermarket giant Kroger as more than 8,000 workers at its King Soopers chain in Colorado have gone on strike.
Sky Harbour, a company developing private aviation infrastructure, is gearing up to land on Wall Street. The company announced plans to go public through a SPAC deal with Yellowstone Acquisition Company, valuing the combined venture at $777 million. The company will trade on the New York Stock Exchange as $SKYH.
On this episode of ChedHER: Model and Fashion Designer Catie Li breaks down what work needs to be done to improve representation in the beauty industry; Jessie Woolley-Wilson, President and CEO of DreamBox Learning, explains how technology is transforming the way the world learns, and her career journey as a leading woman of color in the tech industry.
