E-scooter and e-bike trial

We all want to be safe on local roads and footpaths. The shared e-scooters in the Darebin trial have restrictions in place to provide a safer alternative for locals looking for affordable sustainable transport options.

It is already legal to purchase private e-scooters. Council’s hire scheme provides a safer alternative because of limited speeds, helmet requirements, GPS locating, and in-app tests to ensure riders aren’t under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

E-scooters are subject to road rules enforced by Victoria Police. Shared e-scooters in the Darebin trial feature additional safety technology to ensure they:

• Travel no faster than 20km/h and do not travel into sensitive areas like schools and parklands.
• Have a helmet attached to be rentable 
• Start and end at a designated parking bay to keep our streets tidy and ensure everyone can get where they need to go
• Include in-app tests to ensure riders aren’t under the influence of drugs or alcohol
• Automatically slow down when footpath riding is detected in activity centres.

Safety and accessibility are at the centre of this e-scooter trial.

We’re using the latest technology to restrict where e-scooters can park, to detect and deter footpath riding, ensure helmet use when riders start their journey and to slow e-scooters to walking pace in busy areas. All shared e-scooters in the trial cannot travel faster than 20km/h and cannot travel into sensitive areas like schools and parklands.

E-scooters are legal to ride in Victoria and subject to road rules enforced by Victoria Police, just like cars and bikes. Any private e-scooter capable of travelling more than 20km/h is considered overpowered and is illegal to ride on Darebin’s streets and paths.

Darebin Council takes its responsibility to maintain clear, safe and accessible public spaces very seriously, including areas impacted by the shared e-bike and e-scooter trial.

To support this, Council has entered into a detailed operating agreement with Lime which sets out strict requirements for how scooters must be parked, monitored and managed. This agreement includes clear timeframes for Lime to respond to and rectify any reported issues, including scooters that are obstructing footpaths or creating safety risks.

These response timeframes are designed specifically to protect pedestrian access and safety, particularly for people with disability, parents with prams, and older residents. Council actively monitors compliance with these requirements and works directly with Lime to ensure issues are addressed promptly.

This approach allows Council to uphold its obligations while ensuring there are clear, enforceable processes in place to maintain accessibility across our public spaces.

It is illegal to ride e-scooters on the footpath. All e-scooters operating in the trial will be fitted with advanced technology to deter footpath riding, including audible warnings for users and automatically slowing the e-scooter down when footpath riding is detected in our activity centres.

Our trial features a parking model which is unique to Darebin and requires every e-scooter trip to begin and end in a designated parking bay. Users that don’t end their ride in a designated parking location will continue to be charged until they park the vehicle in a bay. We’ve carefully chosen the locations of these bays with safety and accessibility for other footpath and road users in mind.  

Parking bays will be installed on-road wherever possible, helping to keep footpaths clear and discouraging footpath riding by allowing trips to start on the road. There will be no loss of on-street car parking. 

Lime must resolve any improperly parked e-scooters or e-bikes within a strict timeframe, as per their agreement with Council.

If you see an e-scooter or e-bike parked where it shouldn’t be, raise it directly with Lime by scanning the QR code on the vehicle or using the contact details below.

Lime
1800 861 305
support-au@li.me 

E-scooters are legal in Victoria. You can legally ride an e-scooter in Victoria if you:

• ride on:
  • shared-use paths (not on footpaths), or
  • roads that have a speed limit up to 60km/h
• are at least 16 years old
• wear a helmet
• do not travel more than 20km/h
• do not use your mobile phone
• do not carry a passenger (dinking).

For more information, visit the Victoria Police website.

You can hire e-scooters and e-bikes through Lime's smartphone app. You’ll be able to see real-time information on where to find a ride and where to park.

Darebin's e-bike and e-scooter trial is operating in Northcote, Fairfield and Alphington.

E-Scooters are restricted to these suburbs only and cannot be used outside of these suburbs.

E-Bikes, however, can be used to travel to and from City of Yarra, City of Melbourne, City of Stonnington and City of Port Phillip, where shared e-bike trials are also taking place.

E-scooter users are charged $1 to begin their ride and 54 cents per minute thereafter, with this revenue going to the operating company Lime.

Lime offers a 50 per cent discount for health care card holders.

The Lime smartphone app shows you where to find available e-bikes and e-scooters, as well as where to park them.

It is illegal to ride e-scooters and e-bikes on the footpath. All e-scooters in the Darebin trial are fitted with technology to automatically detect footpath riding and deliver an audible warning to the rider. If this occurs in an activity centre with high volumes of foot traffic, the e-scooter will automatically slow to walking pace (6 km/h).

All e-scooters in the trial are limited to a maximum speed of 20km/h. E-bikes can travel at up to 25 km/h before electrical assistance cuts out.

Lime is covering the cost of new e-scooter parking infrastructure and will pay Council a flat daily fee to operate in Darebin, which is used to offset Council’s costs for running the trial. Based on our understanding of other e-scooter trials across Melbourne, the trial is expected to be cost neutral. It will be evaluated after six months.

Lime e-bikes and e-scooters can be parked in existing bike racks if they don’t occupy more than half of the capacity. This is consistent with parking management in other council areas and helps keep footpaths clear.

If you have a question or feedback about the trial, please contact the Sustainable Transport Team via email at micromobility@darebin.vic.gov.au.

Not all approved parking areas for Lime e-bikes and e-scooters are marked with paint on the ground.

In busy high streets, you’ll see line-marked parking bays. But across the rest of the trial area, there are many other approved places where riders are allowed to park that don’t have physical markings.

These are called virtual parking bays.

Virtual parking bays only appear in the Lime app. When a rider finishes their trip, the app shows them exactly where they are allowed to park. If they don’t park in one of these approved locations, the app won’t let them end their ride.

So, while a scooter or bike might look like it’s parked outside a marked bay, it’s often actually parked correctly within one of these virtual parking areas.

Most virtual parking bays are designed to hold only one or two scooters or bikes at a time, so you won’t see large groups building up in one spot.

These virtual bays allow parking to be spread out safely across the area, without cluttering footpaths or needing painted markings on every street.

E-scooters lose power and stop completely at the geofenced boundary and can’t be ridden outside of the trial area.

Bikes, however, can sometimes appear outside of the trial area from time to time. This has been known to happen before in other municipalities that have run micromobility trials. It can happen with the bikes because, although the electrical assist cuts out at the geofenced boundary, riders can keep pedalling without assistance.

If you find an e-scooter or e-bike where it shouldn't be, you can report to Lime directly on 1800 861 305 or by emailing support-au@li.me

Most virtual parking bays in residential areas are located at intersections on kerb outstands and wide footpaths. They improve connectivity with the service and help people get home safely after dark.

Lime doesn't deploy vehicles in residential areas. E-bikes and e-scooters will only be parked in these locations if someone in your neighbourhood has ridden one home or to visit a friend. Under our agreement with Lime, the vehicles can only be parked in these locations temporarily. If you notice an e-bike or e-scooter that has been idle for more than three days, please report it to Lime for removal using the contact details below:

Lime 
1800 861 305
support-au@li.me

If a virtual parking location is interfering with property maintenance or access, please email us at micromobility@darebin.vic.gov.au