E-scooter companies should take a cue from Skip’s new design

When it comes to recharging rental e-scooters and bicycles, it’s a messy process, often involving independent contractors scooping dead scooters off the street, taking them home to charge, and then dropping them off in the early morning. Even worse: During the charging process, the scooter is out of commission.

San Francisco-based e-scooter rental company Skip is mixing it up with swappable batteries in its new light blue custom-designed scooter, the S3. The scooter will start testing in San Francisco city streets this fall and eventually roll out in October. Skip is one of two scooter companies with permits for San Francisco scooter rentals. It also operates in Washington, D.C.

Skip currently uses modified e-scooters for its fleet and deploys “Rangers” to charge the scooters throughout a city. Until the swappable versions fully replace Skip’s traditional scooters, those workers will still have scooters to charge.

Bigger scooter-share brands Lime and Bird also use charging networks — Lime calls its charging workforce Juicers — but swappable batteries can cut back on waste and keep more scooters available and running. 

Skip says that since the new device is rechargeable “in the field,” the company’s carbon footprint is reduced, with workers replacing batteries on the go in light electric vehicles. Compare that to many independent chargers, who drive around in gas vehicles to find, pick up, charge, and drop off scooters.

It’ll also keep the company running more scooters at its 25-cents-per-minute rate, after a $1 unlocking fee. 

Skip’s new scooter battery is supposed to last 60 percent longer than its current battery packs and up to 35 miles, can withstand 1 meter of water for up to 30 minutes, and will report diagnostics back to Skip staff if it’s damaged.

Uber-owned Jump already uses swappable batteries in its newest electric-assist bicycle (as do other e-bikes, like GenZe’s), while other companies like Scoot, VeoRide, Wheels, and VOI in Europe already built swappable batteries into their scooter fleets. Those companies claim the move reduces down time for the device and cuts back on cost and waste to charge scooters.

Other parts of Skip scooters are replaceable, making additional repairs easier as well. Skip technicians can replace a part without decommissioning the scooter. Once again, the swappable method keeps things running on the road.