Carthage council approves emergency ordinance to resume Lime scooter program amid safety, age concerns

Carthage City Council on May 13 approved an emergency ordinance authorizing the mayor to sign a contract with Neutron Holdings Inc., doing business as Lime, to operate a shared electric scooter program in the city for the 2025 season.

Council members said the contract was advanced as an emergency because staff required a short correction to contract language and the operator’s service is seasonal. Members raised repeated safety concerns during discussion, focusing on enforcement of age limits, riders using sidewalks in downtown areas, and how the operator’s software controls (geo‑fencing) work.

Members noted the Lime user agreement and company website list a minimum age of 18 but said that minimum age is not written into the city contract. A councilmember also expressed concern about scooters operating silently on sidewalks near storefronts and doorways, saying that pedestrians — including children — could be put at risk in those locations. Council members and staff discussed the company’s geo‑fencing limitations, including that some sensitive areas (the golf course and certain state roads) are virtual no‑ride zones, while sidewalks around the square are not currently restricted.

City staff and councilors described municipal legal exposure as limited because the scooter company requires riders to accept a user agreement and provide payment information to activate scooters; one councilmember noted that, in cases where a minor uses a parent’s payment method, liability questions fall to the operator and the cardholder under that user agreement structure. Council members called on parents and caregivers to supervise children and for the city to work with Lime to emphasize age controls and appropriate riding locations.

Procedurally, a councilmember moved to forward council bill 25‑24 to reading and the council advanced the ordinance by voice vote. At a subsequent reading the council approved the ordinance; the meeting transcript records the bill as passed, without a roll‑call tally recorded in the minutes.

The ordinance authorizes the mayor to enter the contract; the text on the agenda identified the operator as Neutron Holdings, Incorporated, DBA Lime. Council discussion indicated the city will monitor downtown scooter use and encourages Lime to continue improving its operational controls and communication about age restrictions and geo‑fencing.

The council did not adopt any additional local age enforcement language during the meeting; councilors said the minimum‑age requirement appeared on Lime’s public sign‑up process but not inside the city contract itself.