Scoot Networks

Scoot Rides

File:Scoot Networks wordmark.png
Scoot Networks Cargo scooter, Classic scooter, and Quad electric car. Scoot Networks Cargo scooter, Classic scooter, and Quad electric car.
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Public transport
Founded	2011
Founder	Michael Keating, Matt Ewing, Dan Riegel
Headquarters	San Francisco, California , United States
Area served	San Francisco Bay Area, Santiago, Barcelona
Key people	Michael Keating (former CEO & president)
Services	Public electric scooter sharing systems
Parent	Bird Global
Website	scoot.co

Scoot Networks, frequently referred to as Scoot or Scoot Rides, operates as a US-based provider of shared electric scooters and bicycles, with its headquarters situated in San Francisco, California.

History

Scoot was established in 2011 by Michael Keating, with Matt Ewing (Chief Commercial Officer) and Dan Riegel (Chief Technology Officer) joining as co-founders in 2012. Keating contributed expertise in urban planning and transportation software, Ewing brought advocacy background, and Riegel had previously co-founded EnergyHub. The company was among the first to offer app-driven rentals of electric vehicles.

By September 2012, the startup secured $775,000 in funding from investors such as Lisa Gansky and Greenstart. It initiated a public beta in San Francisco deploying an initial fleet of 10 scooters, which expanded to 50 units by the end of that year.

In 2014, Scoot launched motor scooters with battery-swapping capabilities, allowing "free-floating" sharing without reliance on fixed charging stations. This advancement led to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) issuing the first on-street parking permits specifically for shared electric mopeds.

By August 2015, the fleet had expanded beyond 400 vehicles, including cargo scooters supplied by German manufacturer GOVECS, designed to accommodate larger users and delivery services. In October 2015, Scoot introduced electric mini-cars branded as Scoot Quads through partnerships with Nissan and Renault, bringing Renault Twizy quadracycles into the American market.

Further capital injections arrived in 2016 from Mahindra Partners and Vision Ridge Capital to support deployment of a new generation of GenZe electric scooters. By mid-2016, Scoot’s fleet had accumulated more than one million miles traveled. To enhance technological capabilities and product innovation, Kunal Bhasin joined as CTO in June 2017.

Scoot’s international expansion began in May 2018 with a launch in Barcelona featuring 500 electric motorcycles followed by an addition of 1,000 electric bicycles. Later that year, in October 2018, the company entered Santiago, Chile’s market offering stand-on electric scooters initially and later incorporating bikes. That same month, San Francisco authorized Scoot as one of two companies permitted to operate shared stand-on electric scooters within city limits.

In July 2019, after providing millions of rides to hundreds of thousands of users and employing approximately 200 personnel, Scoot was acquired by rival Bird Global for an undisclosed amount. Subsequently, Scoot became a wholly owned subsidiary under Bird. In December 2023, Bird filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection while initiating plans for restructuring that included selling assets to creditors.

Services

Scoot runs a digital platform that enables users to share electric scooters, bikes, motorbikes, and cars, all owned and serviced by the company itself. Frequently referred to in the press as the "Zipcar for scooters," Scoot primarily caters to brief, one-way urban journeys—generally lasting less than 20 minutes and covering under 4 miles—utilizing vehicles stationed on city streets and accessed through a smartphone application rather than RFID cards.

In August 2018, Scoot was appointed as a provider for San Francisco's dockless electric kick scooter sharing initiative, broadening its footprint in the urban micromobility sector.

A year later, in August 2019, the Los Angeles Times criticized Scoot for not extending service to San Francisco’s Tenderloin and Chinatown areas. Conversely, The San Francisco Examiner noted that residents in these neighborhoods had requested limited service on congested blocks, underscoring the complexities of aligning community needs with operational policies.

Scoot’s operations utilize GPS technology for efficient fleet oversight. Riders are required to possess a valid driver's license but do not need a motorcycle license. To promote safety, the company offers insurance coverage and supplies helmets stored within each scooter’s cargo compartment.

Pricing

As of October 2018, Scoot’s main offerings were priced as follows (in US dollars):

• Electric mopeds ("Scoots"): starting at $4
• Electric scooters ("Kicks"): starting at $1

Target audience

Scoot focused on users aged 18 to 45 who accessed services via its mobile app on smartphones.

Operations

Scoot Rides was headquartered in San Francisco, California, employing over 100 personnel including engineers, designers, mechanics, customer support representatives, and management staff. Its European operations were based in Barcelona with a workforce exceeding 50 employees across management, marketing, customer service, and technical departments. The Latin American hub located in Santiago, Chile, employed more than 30 professionals covering similar roles.

Fleet

In San Francisco, Scoot deployed electric scooters from manufacturers such as GOVECS and GenZe—a subsidiary of the Mahindra Group whose private equity division invested in Scoot. The company also offered Renault quadracycles and various electric stand-scooters until its acquisition by Bird, after which it transitioned to using Bird’s scooter models.

In Barcelona, Scoot operated electric scooters produced by Spanish manufacturer Silence alongside electric bicycles from Taioku. In Santiago, the fleet comprised both electric scooters and bicycles.