Ford-owned Spin will bring electric scooters to 100 new cities and college campuses this year

NelsonG · March 19, 2019

Spin, the electric scooter startup that Ford bought earlier this year for around $100 million, is gearing up to launch in 100 cities by the end of the year. This is thanks to a new partnership with Zagster, a dockless mobility startup that got its start with bike-share solutions for cities.

“A solid operations infrastructure is the key to making a dockless mobility program work smoothly,” Spin Chief Business Officer Ben Bear said in a statement. “As thousands of people take to the streets daily on shared two-wheeled vehicles, they need to be confident that the vehicles they hop on to have been checked and maintained. Zagster’s experience in managing dockless bike and scooter share programs across the country made them a natural partner to ensure we’re operating compliant, safe, and logistically sound programs.”

Already, Spin and Zagster have partnered to bring micromobility operations to four new markers, including Austin, Isla Vista, Calif., Oklahoma State and Troy University.

Spin also currently operates in Coral Gables, Fla., Washington, D.C., Charlotte, N.C., Durham, N.C., Lexington, Ky., Denver, Colo., Detroit, Mich. and Long Beach, Calif. Spin was one of the three companies that initially deployed its scooters in San Francisco back in March. Along with Bird and Lime, Spin was forced to remove its electric scooters from the city until the city determined a permitting process.

Earlier this year, San Francisco denied Spin’s appeal to operate electric scooters in the city. However, the neutral hearing officer in the appeals process recommended the SF Municipal Transportation Agency consider having Spin participate in the second half of the one-year pilot program.