Recently seen dotting the landscape of St. Paul and Minneapolis are lime green scooters and bicycles. Activated by using the Lime app to scan the code on the individual scooter, Lime allows users with the app to use any scooter or bike, any time.

The app tracks miles biked/rode, calories burned, and ride history. The scooters have been introduced in Paris and over 70 cities around the country including most recently Denver. While many consumers have taken a liking to mobile means of transportation like Uber or Lyft, the infatuation with Lime seems to be no different. The lime green scooters can run up to 15 mph, running on lithium batteries like those used in our phones. The scooters cost one dollar to unlock and an additional 15 cents per minute.

While large companies like Uber and Lyft currently have monopolies over transportation via car, companies like Lime and its rival Bird Rides are thinking about different means of transportation.

Unsurprisingly, Lime’s success has grabbed the attention of both Uber and Lyft with the company already valued at 1.1 billion. Uber seeks to add a feature to its services that allow customers to rent a scooter. Proposing a paid partnership with Lime, Uber has offered $335 million towards funding for scooter startup Lime with Uber branding.

While many students around the SPA community use Uber as a means of transportation, the question arises as to whether or not scootering would replace traditional forms of transportation. Senior Janie Brunell says that she has seen the scooters around the Highland area but doesn’t know if she would ever use one.

“Since I have a car, I don’t think I would have any use for the Lime scooter app. Most of the time when I use services like Uber I need to go a long way, which would be hard to do on a scooter,” Brunell said.

While the scooters may not be as reliable for traveling a long distance, they can be a fun and easy trip when only going a short distance.

“I think that the lime scooters look really fun,” junior Pia Schultz said. “I would use them more for entertainment than I would for getting somewhere but I still really want to try it.”

Whether it be for practical or recreational uses, scooter transportation has exploded over the United States from Los Angeles to Saint Paul, aiming to improve the traditional way of transportation.