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    April Fool’s Day: City of Columbus Contracts Bird Scooters to Replace Vehicle Fleet

    Officials with the City of Columbus announced this morning that the Department of Public Service would be entering into a unique agreement with Bird Scooters to replace the city’s entire vehicle fleet. Touted as a cost-saving move, officials praised the startup tech company’s innovative private transportation mode as the way of the future.

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    “Through our Smart Columbus initiative, we’re not only looking to utilize the latest and greatest transportation methods, we’re also looking for ways to save money and be accountable to taxpayers,” stated Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther at a press conference this morning.

    Vehicle updates will include the following changes starting on May 1st:

    • The Division of Refuse will replace all garbage trucks with scooters, installing special carrying racks for bags of trash on the back.
    • Winterized scooters will outfitted with small snowplows and salt-spreaders to combat snow and ice during colder months.
    • The Keep Columbus Beautiful program will provide scooters to community clean-up groups who want to pick up litter on the go.
    • Parking meter enforcement officials will receive special scooters that can travel up to 70 miles per hour instead of the usual 15mph limit, so that car drivers won’t be able to escape the ticket writing process by driving away.

    Following the press conference Ginther and his team climbed into a city-owned SUV for their trip back to City Hall. He rolled down the car window to address reporters about his vehicle choice.

    “Oh, this doesn’t apply to me… I’m not riding one of those things,” said Ginther. “Plus, it’s like 25 degrees this morning! No thanks!”

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    Walker Evans
    Walker Evanshttps://columbusunderground.com
    Walker Evans is the co-founder of Columbus Underground, along with his wife and business partner Anne Evans. Walker has turned local media into a full time career over the past decade and serves on multiple boards and committees throughout the community.
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