Back off to better blow up ? On April 2, the vote organized by the Paris City Hall sounded the death knell for self-service scooters from September 1. A violent blow behind the heads of operators who have seen one of their main activities in the capital disappear.
Not enough to give up on Paris for Lime, one of the three operators with Dott and Tier Mobility, which intends to bounce back after this disillusionment. If we could imagine the company flying to other skies with its scooters under its arm, the company confirmed this Wednesday that only the machines will leave Paris: “We are going to reallocate the scooters to some of the 250 cities in which we we are present”, says Hadi Karam, general manager of Lime France, before adding that priority would be given to European cities.
From 3,000 to 10,000 bicycles between 2020 and 2023
The general manager assures him, in Paris, Lime is now looking to the future. Because they never sparked the debate like scooters, the company is now focusing on bike share. “We currently have a large park in the capital. An expanding offer,” says Hadi Karam. And for good reason, while the company had 3,000 machines in 2020, the success and demand for the service convinced the Paris City Hall to increase this quota to 10,000 bikes in 2023.
“Now that the vote on scooters has passed, we are focusing on this service which, we are convinced, can offer another mobility solution to Parisians. “And we will need solutions, because with 1.5 million unique users on scooters in 2022, the postponement of these journeys will be a major challenge for mobility players from September.
“We will do everything to ensure that users refer to our bikes”
A possible transfer that does not scare the operator, quite the contrary: “We will do everything to ensure that users refer to our bikes. Because Lime, which has already seen an 80% increase in users on its bikes between 2021 and 2022 and a 73% growth in trips in 2022, sees this postponement as a boon to bounce back.
And the operator is confident. As proof, the company invested in a new warehouse in Charenton-le-Pont last February, after the announcement of the referendum, the outcome of which left little doubt. A change that shows Lime’s ambition: “We will continue to invest in carbon-free mobility. And we have the 2024 Olympic Games in perspective, which can be a new springboard. As a precaution, however, the various repair, maintenance and recycling workshops are flexible to be able to work on scooters as well as on bicycles.
A first meeting with the City of Paris
A will able to reassure the 250 employees of the company who were worried at the announcement of the vote of the City of Paris. On this subject, Hadi Karam is inflexible, no social plan is planned for 2023: “We have the financial stability to absorb this shock in the short term and we are doing what is necessary to sustain jobs. We are counting on growth in the bicycle sector to strengthen our teams. »
The company thus hopes to develop its activity in Paris and in other cities in the Paris region. For this, Lime already met last week with Emmanuel Grégoire, Anne Hidalgo’s first deputy, David Belliard, deputy in charge of mobility and Afaf Gabelotaud, deputy in charge of companies and employment to discuss the future of mobility. in the city.