Lime Of The Times

Even our footpaths are no longer safe, thanks to reckless scooter-riders.

- Bill Ralston

As I stepped out of one of my favourite Auckland eateries, there was a whirr and a blur of green in front of my face. A bloody Lime scooter missed me by centimetres and was weaving its way at a fast clip through a small herd of stampeding pedestrians. Yes, I know, I am a curmudgeon who resents the freedom and fun for young folk who use the scooters to whizz around the city.

For those readers whose town or city does not have a Lime scooter fleet (you lucky buggers), I should explain that they are for hire in Auckland and Christchurch, running on electric motors up to speeds of 24km/h, and are generally found when you trip over one lying on the footpath.

The scooters are GPS-tracked and, presumably, at some point a bloke in a truck comes around to pick them up for recharging, before dumping them back on the footpath in handy locations.