PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — A California company has removed its electric scooters from three New England cities after officials asked the firm to get permission first.
Los Angeles-based Bird Rides Inc. has stopped renting out its stand-up scooters in Providence, Rhode Island, and in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts.
The two neighboring Massachusetts cities had sent cease-and-desist letters to Bird after its scooters appeared on sidewalks last month with no warning.
Rhode Island’s capital city took a more welcoming approach but sought to regulate the business. Providence officials said they would allow the scooters on a trial basis if the company applied for a pilot program. As of Thursday, however, the company hadn’t applied.
Bird said in a statement Thursday that it’s voluntarily leaving the three cities for now but may seek to return.
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