What It's Like For One Uber Driver Dodging Dockless Scooters In Austin

Published August 23, 2018 at 11:52 AM CDT

A picture taken in Paris on July 31, 2018 shows electric scooters of US start-up Bird. - Bird will launch its sharing service in Paris on August 1, 2018. (Photo by ERIC PIERMONT / AFP) (Photo credit should read ERIC PIERMONT/AFP/Getty Images)

You’ll have a hard time driving around Austin, Texas, without noticing electric scooters dropped there by companies like Bird and Lime. It’s a similar story this summer in cities across the U.S. as local governments grapple with how to regulate them.

Tourists are often big fans, but some locals are not as enthusiastic. Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson takes a detour from 2018 midterm elections coverage to ride with Paul Christian, an Uber driver in Austin, and find out what it’s like to navigate the city alongside all the scooters.

You can find Christian’s YouTube videos here, and scroll down for a photo of him with his car — plus a video of Jeremy riding a Bird scooter in Austin:

Great time in Austin – capped off with a quick ride on a Bird scooter. I promise to wear a helmet if I go beyond one block! pic.twitter.com/v8jG3vy7Kn

— Jeremy Hobson (@jeremyhobson) August 22, 2018