City officials are extending a restriction on Red Bikes, as well as Bird and Lime electric scooters, during the nighttime hours in response to a spike in crime in Cincinnati’s urban core.
During a July 9 press conference addressing citywide crime, City Manager Sheryl Long said the first weekend of restrictions, which happened the weekend of July 4, proved to be a “success in eliminating the types of incidents police have struggled with.”
Long said the restrictions will resume on July 11 and 12 at 8 p.m. and last until 6 a.m. the following morning. She added that the city will continue to assess the restrictions on a week-by-week basis.
The first restriction was a trial effort by city leaders to combat a recent rise in crime across Cincinnati and particularly in the urban core. It follows the creation of a roving task force to proactively target crime hot spots and the introduction of new crime-fighting tools like remotely piloted drones.
Long said there are concerns about bikes and scooters being used to commit crimes and help perpetrators escape from the police.
“They are being used to more effectively commit property crimes, steal guns and create quality of life issues,” the city manager said. “They themselves are not the issues, nor are the vast majority of people who ride them safely, but they become a useful tool for criminals intent on causing harm.”
Red Bikes, which have docks across Cincinnati and in parts of Northern Kentucky, will still be able to be rented during the daytime hours and at night outside of Downtown and Over-the-Rhine. For riders who venture into the urban core with a bike, they can return the bike to a dock, but will not be able to take a bike out.
Rental electric scooters have agreements with the city that restrict where they can ride, when they can be rented and how fast they can go. The scooters are already restricted from being rented from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. seven days a week.
Enquirer staff writer David Ferrara contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Restrictions on Red Bikes, electric scooters continue amid push to combat spike in crime
Reporting by Quinlan Bentley, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
