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 </figure>News releaseBird Rides, a shared electric scooter company, will bring their e-scooters to the Hays community on April 2. Scooters will be available through the Bird Rides mobile phone application and riders pay to use the scooter per minute.The company plans on offering scooters to residents and visitors in order to reduce traffic congestion on roadways, as well as help reduce carbon emissions.&nbsp;The scooters also provide a safe way to get around during the pandemic and offer residents without automobiles another transportation option.After downloading the Bird app and creating an account, users will be able to locate scooters nearest to them, and even reserve a scooter. The cost to ride is $1 to start and $0.39/minute thereafter. The fleet will start with 25 scooters with plans to eventually increase the inventory to 75. The entire fleet will never be on the road at the same time, due to scooters rotating out to be charged and repaired. Local fleet managers will ensure scooters are charged and in good working condition.The electric scooters can be used on roads and in bike lanes and have a maximum speed of 15 mph.&nbsp;Scooters must be parked out of the way of pedestrians and never block driveways. Riders must be 18 years old and above to access the scooters. They are also encouraged to wear a helmet on every ride and required to obey all standard rules of the road.&nbsp;Calculated on either a per trip or per miles traveled basis, riding a Bird is as safe as, or safer than, bicycling. On average, Bird riders reported one incident resulting in any kind of injury for every 27,000 miles ridden (or in less than 0.01% of trips). Bird’s industry-leading safety policies and practices include:<ul>
 <li>Ceasing operations after midnight, when risk to all road users increases</li><li>Requiring riders to confirm they are 18 or older</li><li>Instituting responsible speed limits in consultation with city officials</li><li>Enabling direct reporting of irresponsible parking behavior through the in-app Community Mode feature</li>
 </ul>Bird offers the following programs for all who qualify:Community PricingBird’s Community Pricing Program offers a 50% discount to low-income riders, Pell grant recipients, select local nonprofit and community organizations, veterans, and senior citizens. It’s designed to be the most inclusive micro-mobility discount program available anywhere. To sign up for the Community Pricing Program, download the Bird app, create an account, and email your proof of eligibility to <a href="mailto:access@bird.co">access@bird.co</a>.Free Rides for Healthcare Workers and Emergency PersonnelBird is proud to offer free rides to healthcare workers and emergency personnel. To sign up, simply email a copy of your medical identification card along with your name and phone number to <a href="mailto:together@bird.co">together@bird.co</a>. Eligible riders will receive two free 30-minute rides per day for as long as it takes to help our communities to recover from this global health crisis.If a resident has questions or concerns about the e-scooters, the company can be reached directly at 1-866-205-2442 or <a href="mailto:hello@bird.co">hello@bird.co</a>. More information about the company can be found on their website, <a href="http://www.bird.co">www.bird.co</a>, and on their blog, <a href="http://www.bird.co/blog">www.bird.co/blog</a>.&nbsp;

Bird scooters land in Hays on Friday