Brood of Bird electric scooters land in Kansas City
July 12, 2018 | Bobby Burch
Birds of a feather scoot together.
Joining more than 20 cities across the U.S., Kansas City became the most recent community to welcome a flock of Bird electric scooters.
The Los Angeles-based firm dropped off dozens of black, lithium-ion-powered scooters throughout Kansas City, allowing 
users to rent the vehicles and zip across town with a $1 start fee and 15 cents per minute after that. More than 60 of the scooters were dropped off by the company — which is valued at more that $1 billion — in such areas as the River Market, Central Business District, Crossroads Arts District, 18th and Vine and the Country Club Plaza.
The scooters are pleasant to drive and easy to access, though Thou Mayest founder Bo Nelson can see them eventually becoming an issue, he said. Nelson enjoyed his first ride on a Bird Wednesday.
“It’s the best and probably most dynamic way to explore the city,” said Nelson, whose popular Crossroads coffee shop is in the heart of the Bird service area in Kansas City. “It’s affordable, allows for maximum independence and you just leave it when you’re done. I can see problems coming, but let’s enjoy it while we can.”
To access Bird’s scooters, users must download the company’s app, scan a scooter’s unique QR code and give the vehicle a few pushes to get it moving. Once scooting along, users can reach maximum speeds of 15 mph to travel short distances. The company encourages users to bring their own helmets for safety.
Bird uses GPS to track the scooters and will pay fans $5 to $20 to pick up and charge the vehicles at their homes.
Hoping to expand to 50 metros across the U.S., Bird has already irked some communities, spurring complaints that scooter users leave the vehicles in disruptive locations and cause collisions or injuries. Denver and San Francisco have already banned the scooters. Bird wants to work with local governments to craft reasonable regulations, the company said.
Bird and the City of Kansas City, Mo. are currently in conversations on how to best regulate the company.
The ruffled feathers, however, haven’t hurt Bird’s early successes. The company recently raised $150 million in a round led by Sequoia Capital, which reportedly valued the firm at $1 billion.
Check out Thou Mayest founder Bo Nelson’s thoughts after his first ride on one the company’s scooters.
2018 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Two KC EdTech startups earn spots in latest LEANLAB cohort; launch set for August
It’s a highly selective process to join the fifth LEANLAB K-12 fellowship, said Katie Boody, but two Kansas City startups made the cut. K12 Perform and Base Academy of Music will join four other cohort members — hailing from the Midwest to Washington D.C. — in the August-to-November EdTech accelerator program. LEANLAB is partnering…
HechoKC cast in hand-made image of Chicano artist’s culture, family, community
Witnessing — and participating in — Kansas City’s renaissance has been amazing, said Luis Garcia, the longtime artist behind HechoKC. The Crossroads used to be a ghost town, said Garcia, who has been part of the KC scene since his years at the Kansas City Art Institute. He developed SPYN Studio, a branding and design…
Quartet of startups hop into the Digital Sandbox KC
Four early-stage businesses recently entered the Digital Sandbox KC program. The new startups demonstrate the ingenuity Digital Sandbox aims to attract for its grant-funding efforts, said Jeff Shackelford, director of Digital Sandbox KC. “From helping students prepare for college to analyzing voting records to predict legislative outcomes, the startups in the Sandbox are a great…
Newest Techstars KC class tackling payday loans, food safety, bots for business
Techstars Kansas City has revealed its 2018 cohort of startups. The 10 companies will make a big impact not only on Kansas City but the global economy, said Lesa Mitchell, managing director of Techstars KC. “Although our companies come from many industries, they share in common that they are all solving problems to make the…