Tampa to tighten e-scooter rules, impose fines

TAMPA, Fla. - They’re a convenient and eco-friendly way to get around and in the last five years, e-scooters have taken cities across the world by storm. But their roll-out hasn’t exactly been smooth. 

Careless users frequently leave scooters parked in the middle of sidewalks, and blocking crosswalk entrances, driveways or doorways to buildings. 

Scooters left too close to Tampa’s waterways have also proven a tempting target for vandals. The city has hired Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful to help routinely pull e-scooters out of the Hillsborough River. 

A man rides an e-scooter. 

Now, city officials are preparing to tighten the rules on e-scooter parking in hopes of curbing persistent problems. 

 READ: 81-year-old woman dead after being struck by electric scooter in St. Pete: police

Once the rules go into effect, riders will be prompted by the scooter’s app to park in designated corrals or officially approved areas. 

"For the users, it will be seamless in that if they're not parked in the right place, the app is going to tell them, ‘Hey, this is not where you park.’ You need to park here," said Tampa Mobility Director Vik Bhide. 

E-scooter corrals coming to Tampa. 

The new parking rules also come with fines for riders who don’t follow them. There will also be a bounty program where app users can collect credits by returning wayward scooters to designated corals. 

READ: Frontier Airlines launches 'All-You-Can-Fly' annual pass for lowest price ever

Bhide says corrals will be spread across the city, with ample options in popular ride destinations. He acknowledges there may be occasions where approved parking areas fill up but says the company’s app will be able to direct a user to the nearest alternative parking spaces, much like it already shows a customer where to find their nearest e-scooters and bikes. 

E-scooters lined up.

Designated micro-mobility parking areas will be shared between e-scooters and e-bikes. Bhide explains that corrals may take many forms, from simple paint markings on sidewalks, to metal docking stations.  

Exact fine amounts and a date for when the new parking rules will go into effect are yet to be decided. Tampa City Council will discuss the new rules on Thursday at their regularly scheduled meeting.