October 01, 2024
Scooters will Be Available in Capital Region Cities in October
ALBANY, NY (October 1, 2024) The Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) will pilot an electric scooter program called SCOOT, beginning Friday, October 4, 2024. There will be pop-up events in Albany, Troy, Schenectady, and Saratoga Springs for people to give the scooters a try.
“CDTA is excited to add another option for customers to our growing mobility menu,” said CDTA CEO Carm Basile. “After working to find an operations vendor and updated technology, we’re excited to introduce SCOOT to Capital Region communities. We hope customers take advantage of this pilot program so we can learn what we need to do to formally add scooters to our menu of services and to have scooters readily available to customers in the near future.”
CDTA is working with DROP Mobility to launch updated software, a new website, and an updated mobile app. Customers will need to create a membership via the mobile app called “CDTA SCOOT.” Scooters will cost $2 to unlock and $0.25 per minute to ride.
SCOOT will be available in the City of Albany Friday, October 4, through Sunday, October 6. Scooters will then be available in the City of Troy from Friday, October 11 through Sunday, October 13. SCOOT will also be available in the City of Schenectady on Friday, October 18 through Sunday, October 20. The City of Saratoga Springs will pilot the scooters from Friday, October 25, through Sunday, October 27. The pilot will include 30 to 40 scooters each weekend, and they will be available from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturdays, and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.
Customers must be 18 years old with driver’s license verification to rent an electric scooter. Scooters will only be allowed in a specific geofenced area in each city for safety and efficiency purposes. The geofenced areas are shown at https://www.cdta.org/scoot. Users will scan a QR code on the vehicle to begin the rental process, which will end with a photograph showing the vehicle returned to one of the SCOOT racks.
If a scooter leaves the geofenced area, the motor will shut down, and customers will receive a text directing them to return the scooter. Scooters must also remain on roadways, follow traffic laws, and they are not permitted on sidewalks in the geofenced areas. When not in use, the scooter must be locked to one of the SCOOT racks. Customers are encouraged to wear helmets when riding.
The SCOOT pilot program will help test the technology and provide CDTA with operating experience, looking toward the potential for this mobility solution to be more readily available in the future.
Anyone needing more information about SCOOT can visit https://scootcdta.com/ or contact CDTA’s Customer Service Center at (518) 482-8822. Customer service representatives are on duty 6:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. weekdays and 8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Saturday and from 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. on Sunday and holidays.
###