No More Electric Scooters on Houston Sidewalks? We Have Solutions!

Houston just gave scooters the boot … well, sort of.

Houston City Council voted on Wednesday to set some regulations for electronic scooters, which came zipping into town two years ago, from sidewalks, parking lots, and other city-owned property Downtown and in other areas like the Galleria and Greenway Plaza.

So what regulations? Mostly, e-scooter companies like Glyderz and ScootsTx must park their scooters on private property instead of in tangled, accidents-waiting-to-happen piles on street corners. Plus, people have to ride them on the street and not on the sidewalk. Thus, you’re less likely to get bowled over by need-for-speed tweens or 20-somethings at questionable levels of intoxication while walking around.

This means fair is fair, and scooters must follow the same rules of the road as other two-wheeled vehicles, like bicycles. If recalling that one hazy driver’s-ed lesson on bike rules proves too difficult, here’s a refresher.

And if now you’re like—‘Oh no, I can’t ride a scooter on the street!’—we’ve brainstormed some alternate modes of transportation just for you.

1. Drive: You do live in Houston.
2. Take METRO Houston: Make your tax dollars work for you. (Plus, you can spot cool murals at different light rail stations.)
3. Walk: Exercise? Oh, the horror.
4. Hail a taxi: Sure, your friends might accuse you of becoming a boomer, but there’s only a $6 flat fare for rides anywhere in the Central Business District.
5. Fly: Yeah, this one might require a little ingenuity to figure out, but we believe in you.
6. Ride a horse: You do live in Texas.
7. Ride a bike: This is a tad more feasible than a horse, thanks to the city’s BCycle program, which provides rentable e-bikes throughout Downtown and Midtown.
8. Use a rideshare app: We get if you’re still a little nervous about this option, but check out Uber’s Covid-19 safety rules here.
9. Roller skate: You’ll never look so cool ever again. Until you fall. 
10. Just ride the freaking scooter in the street: It’ll be okay. We promise.