The city council’s commission on Bicycle and Pedestrian safety met Wednesday to discuss the impact of scooters on the city.
The City of Columbia and Bird Scooters are working out a plan to allow the scooters to safely operate in the city for a year. City officials have been negotiating details with the company but a deal has not yet been reached.
Commission member Lawrence Simonson said he believes the scooters will ultimately be positive for the city because they don’t pose as big a threat as other issues.
“And it almost disheartens me that something like a scooter will come along and we have this massive outrage over them but, when we have true safety concerns and true safety hazards already happening in our community the media, the public stay silent,” said Simonson.
The commission made no recommendation yet on the scooters. The city council will review the agreement with the company when it’s completed.
