Turquoise is celebrating a comeback: Steyr’s new fleet of e-scooters is crossing the border

For a year and a half, the green e-scooters from Kiwi-Ride were part of the Steyr cityscape. Now they were replaced by a turquoise fleet. The new contract with the Berlin-based provider “Tier” has been running since Friday. In the future – until the end of 2024 for the time being – up to 140 of these much more robust but also more modern e-scooters will speed through Steyr and, for the first time, beyond the city limits through parts of Dietach and Garsten.

“It shouldn’t be a toy for young people, but a modern mobility solution,” says Traffic City Councilor Judith Ringer (VP). As a supplement to the bus and train, the companions are a contribution to the last mile: “Each e-scooter reduces the traffic jam and does not take up an additional parking space.”

The basic rate for a trip is one euro, plus 27 cents per minute. This means that the Tier scooters, which weigh around 35 kilos and have a top speed of 25 km/h, are also more expensive than the previous models. Kiwi-Ride charged 19 cents per minute.

“But we offer a daily rate for EUR 12.99 and a monthly subscription for EUR 5.99 without an additional activation fee,” says Tier regional manager Martin Skerlan. There will also be test offers with free minutes.

In connection with the change of provider, the old problems should also be banned from the city area. “Unfortunately, our experience with the Kiwi-Ride devices was not the best,” says Ringer. Neither were the e-scooters modern, and the vehicles were simply left standing everywhere in Steyr. Likewise, the enthusiasm of the fire brigade and city services was manageable: Scooters illegally “disposed of” in the riverbed or in the countryside had caused many a use.

Now there will be so-called blocked zones in which parking is impossible – for example along the Enns and Steyr, but also in green zones such as the Münichholz forest. “And at specially designated places, the return is rewarded with a minute credit,” says Harald Peham (VP), Chairman of the Mobility Committee. This is intended to achieve targeted parking at initially twelve defined places.