Bird scooter company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy; operations to continue in Austin
Popular scooter company, Bird, announced Wednesday it is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
The self-proclaimed largest micromobility operator in North America will restructure their finances, with $25 million in debtor-in-possession financing from MidCap Financial, a division of Apollo Global Management and other lenders.
When reached for comment, a Bird spokesperson told the Statesman, "the company expects to continue operating as we have in the past and will continue our strong relationship with the city administration to work hand in hand with them to deploy the correct number of scooters in the City of Austin."
More: How frequently do e-scooter accidents happen in Austin? Not as often as you may think.
According to the Austin Transportation Department, Bird scooters currently cost $1 to start, and are then 39 cents per minute, and include a City of Austin per-ride fee of 15 cents.
This summer, the American-Statesman reported that the Austin Travis-County EMS responded to 48 accidents involving a scooter or e-bike from July to August, many caused by drinking and riding. And yet, despite a propensity to injuries, Austinities and visitors alike took 725,700 trips on the scooters, for a total of 754,658 miles with an average speed of 6 miles per hour, according to the city's Public Safety Committee.
As of Wednesday, there were still thousands of Bird scooters available for use on Austin's streets.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Despite bankruptcy, Bird scooters to continue operating in Austin
