Shared electric scooters are coming to Brampton and Oshawa, and Hamilton has named Bird its exclusive scooter operator, as the company expands across the Greater Toronto Area this spring.
Bird Global Inc. says it will bring 450 of its Bird Three shared e-scooters to Hamilton, 250 to Brampton and 300 to Oshawa. The rollout begins with a launch event in Hamilton on April 3, with the other cities to follow in the weeks after.
The move makes Bird the operator of shared e-scooters in five Ontario cities, including Ottawa and Windsor, along with 11 other cities across Canada. The company described expanding in the GTA as a long-standing priority.
Since our earliest days, we've been committed to partnering with cities to expand access to reliable, sustainable transportation through shared micro-mobility programs and expanding in the Greater Toronto Area has long been a high priority for us, Stewart Lyons, Bird's president, said in a statement.
The launches follow request-for-proposal processes in each market, according to a release. A Bird spokesperson cited strong support from policymakers for bringing e-scooters into the local communities.
Since we came together as one team, our focus has remained unchanged - to continue serving local communities in the most sustainable, reliable and successful way for riders, policymakers and our business, the spokesperson told SustainableBiz via email. We are very excited about the launches in the Greater Toronto Area, and reiterate our commitment to this work.
Bird Global was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Miami, offering short-term scooter rentals as well as direct-to-consumer electric scooters and bikes. Its scooters are now available in more than 350 cities, mainly in the U.S., Canada, Europe, the Middle East and Australia.
Bird Canada, founded in 2019, had operated independently using Bird branding, vehicles and technology until a $42.6-million funding transaction this year folded its operations into the global business. Three Bird Canada executives joined Bird Global as part of the deal, including Lyons, co-founder and CEO of the Canadian brand.
The Bird Three scooter carries a battery with a capacity of up to one kilowatt-hour. The company says its Canadian operations are already EBITDA-positive for the full year.
Bird Canada has grown to be the largest micro-mobility operator in Canada, and has done so successfully and profitably, helping contribute to Bird's global footprint, the spokesperson wrote. We share a deep commitment to continuing to serve the communities in which we operate, being trusted local partners, enabling city leaders to meet their mobility and climate goals.
Millions of trips and tonnes of emissions avoided
The company says riders have taken more than three million trips and travelled over eight million kilometres since Bird began operating, which it estimates has saved 2,150 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.
In 2022 alone, Bird Canada riders travelled the equivalent of 552,810 car journeys, based on the company's assumption that 45 per cent of scooter trips would otherwise have been taken by car. A company survey of 3,030 respondents conducted in November found Bird Canada users contributed an estimated $32.8 million to the economy by supporting local businesses that year.
In Hamilton, where Bird will be the sole scooter operator, the company said it will work with the city to ensure riders can always find an available vehicle. In other cities, it said it aims to balance fleet size with demand.
"We would love to expand further into Canadian markets, support their goals of sustainability and active transportation and are eager to have those conversations with cities to find the right solutions," Lyons said.
