Love 'em or hate 'em, electric Spin scooters are here to stay in Pittsburgh, giving commuters a fun, possibly more eco-friendly way to traverse the city. Another transportation option, the rideshare app Lyft, announced that it has partnered with Spin as a way to give users in Pittsburgh and beyond more access to the scooter-share program.
Pittsburgh was among 13 chosen cities where users will be able to rent Spin scooters through the Lyft app. The program, which launched on March 24 in Nashville, Tenn., will come to select cities throughout April.
Lyft confirmed that the Spin option will launch in Pittsburgh this month but have yet to set an exact date.
A press release says the benefit of the Lyft-Spin partnership is that it "creates a seamless experience: riders can simply rent and pay for Spin scooters in the Lyft app without needing to download another app or add new payment information."
“We couldn’t be more excited about this exclusive partnership to bring access to Spin vehicles to millions of Lyft riders across the country," says Ben Bear, CEO of Spin. "This is the latest in a series of integrations focused on making it just as easy to get around cities via multimodal transportation as it is with a personal car. This partnership has been a long time in the making and it has been clear in every interaction with the Lyft team that we share both a common vision for the sustainable future of urban transportation and a commitment to working with cities and public transit authorities the right way.”
Riders in select cities will see Spin scooters as an option when they search for destinations in the Lyft app. Riders can tap the scooter icon at the bottom of the screen, and nearby scooters will populate the map.
A Spin scooter can be unlocked via the Lyft app by scanning its QR code or entering the scooter ID number.
Overall, Lyft plans to enable Spin rentals through its app in over 60 total U.S. markets.
Spin was founded in 2017, and since then, the San Francisco-based company has worked to bring electric bikes and scooters systems — or, as Spin calls it, "micromobility" — to urban areas. Pittsburgh adopted Spin scooters in 2021.
"With our bikes and scooters now in 14 U.S. cities, Lyft has made strides to improve people’s lives with the world’s best transportation,” said Caroline Samponaro, Lyft VP of Transit and Micromobility Policy. "Working together with Spin allows us to expand access to micromobility and serve more people in more areas, all in the Lyft app.”
Lyft to offer Spin scooter rentals through its app in Pittsburgh
