IN THIS ISSUE OF THE SCOOTER SUBCOMMITTEE UPDATE:
- Scooter Safety
- New Scooter Signage
- New Details About New Scooter Vendor Veo
- Our Next Meeting
SCOOTER SAFETY.
The UpDoNA scooter subcommittee was originally formed to address safety in downtown Denver by reducing scooter/pedestrian conflicts resulting from scooters being inappropriately ridden on sidewalks. While our primary concern has been pedestrian safety, it has not been without concern for scooter rider safety. This concern has been, in part, a reason we are encouraging the Denver Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) to correct misleading signs implying that only bicycles can be ridden in downtown bike lanes (see update on New Scooter Signage below).
According to THIS ARTICLE in Westword, Denver saw an unprecedented surge in fatal incidents involving standing electric scooters in 2025, marking the highest year of e-scooter deaths since the devices became popular in the city. According to data compiled from Denver’s Department of Transportation & Infrastructure and police reports, eight riders died in e-scooter crashes in 2025, a number that quadrupled the previous annual record and accounted for more than half of all standing scooter fatalities since 2018. Overall, 15 people have now died while riding rentable standing scooters in Denver since the micromobility trend began.
The surge in deaths is notable because it contrasts with broader trends in scooter incidents: although the total number of scooter-vehicle crashes and reported injuries dipped somewhat compared with 2024, the fatality rate spiked dramatically. Police records show 199 collisions between scooters and motor vehicles in 2025, with seven of the eight fatalities stemming from those crashes, and 19 additional crashes resulting in serious bodily injuries. Meanwhile, Denver Health hospitals recorded nearly 1,900 scooter-related patient encounters last year, illustrating that many injuries go unreported to police.
Despite the grim figures, scooter usage in the city remained significant. Denver logged over 5.4 million rentable e-scooter trips in 2025, averaging roughly 14,850 rides per day. This ridership actually declined slightly from 2024, representing the first annual drop since the city began tracking micromobility usage.
We can only hope that the new scooters that will be put into use by the new scooter vendor, Veo (see New Details About New Scooter Vendor Veo, below) will enhance scooter rider safety.
NEW SCOOTER SIGNAGE. We are starting to see new signs and new public service announcements related to safe scooter riding in Downtown Denver. Here’s a sample from 16th Street:
Based upon recent observations, illegal scooter trips on 16th Street seem to have decreased lately, presumably in part because the scooter vendors have restored geofencing the area.
We continue to urge DOTI to correct the misleading signs on bike lanes to show that scooters, as well as bicycles, can use the lanes. Our latest suggestion to DOTI was to simply add a small, “Scooters OK” sign below the existing “Bikes Only” signs. We have not yet had a response from DOTI.
Over on 14th Street, UpDoNA’s new public service announcement has begun running on the two electronic billboards that are mounted on the Spire building:
As you may recall, Denver announced that scooter vendor Veo will be Denver’s sole provider of e-scooters and e-bikes, after Lime and Bird exit the market in May. Veo offers a broader selection of e-vehicles and will be debuting their three-wheel vehicle right here in Denver.
See what Veo has to say about their partnership with Denver HERE. And respond to their survey questions for Denver residents HERE.
A representative of DOTI updated UpDoNA members at the last meeting of the Scooter Subcommittee. Here’s what we learned:
- Veo will hire and pay workers to reposition, maintain, and manage their vehicles rather than contracting with others. One of their staff will be in the UpDoNA area (possibly LoDoNA, too).
- Everything proposed by Veo is going into the scope of work for the contract.
- The contract will be for 3 years with an optional 2-year extension if all is going well.
- The contract will provide revenue to the city.
- The new city ordinance requirements were written into the RFP and will be in the contract.
- Veo will add parking corrals in the mandatory parking zones (i.e. the UpDoNA and LoDoNA areas) although some time will be required to site and permit the new corrals.
- Emphasis will be placed on spaces near bike lanes and “sight spaces” near intersections.
- DOTI will take the negotiated contract to City Council for approval in mid-March.
- DOTI was slated to start updating individual council members on Wednesday, February 4.
- DOTI is working to ensure a seamless transition when Lime & Bird are replaced by Veo in mid-May.
- Issues include:
- Transfer of information from Lime & Bird and easy enrollment of Denver residents (especially for subsidized and free riders) in the Veo system.
- Removal of Lime & Bird vehicles.
If you’d like to hear directly from representatives of the City and the scooter vendors, consider attending our next meeting.
UPCOMING MEETING. The next meeting of UpDoNA’s Scooter Subcommittee will be held April 7, 2026 from 3:00 pm-4:30 pm at Olive & Finch on 14th Street at the DCPA. Reach out to David Kurth if you want to be added to the mailing list. David_Kurth@msn.com
Thumbnail attribution: David Kurth
