Google Maps will show the location of Lime electric scooters

Google Maps is starting to include the location of Lime's e-scooters in some cities. For a long time these vehicles have been operating in large urban centers to circulate better in case there is too much traffic. Thus, as of today, 13 cities in the United States (Auckland, Austin, B altimore, Brisbane, Dallas, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, San Diego, Oakland, San Antonio, San José, Scottsdale and Seattle), will have a navigation option on Google Maps that will show the time it takes to get to the closest scooters, plus an estimate of the cost and travel time.

It's not too surprising that Google chose Lime to integrate scooters into Google Maps for the first time. Along with Uber, its parent company Alphabet recently made a sizeable investment in these vehicles. Immediately after closing the deal, Uber began offering rentals through its app, and now Google is following suit. On the other hand, being so visible on Maps will give Lime an edge over the competition. What remains to be seen now is whether other mobility services will join in also to the recommendations of Google Maps.

Although at the moment this possibility is not available in Spain, the issue is complicated. Lime electric vehicles have permission to circulate in Madrid and Zaragoza. However, the Madrid city council is withdrawing them for ensuring that they are not complying with the current regulation.These scooters cannot start or end a journey in pedestrian spaces or on roads with many lanes and cannot exceed a speed of 50 kilometers per hour. Recently, news broke of the first pedestrian fatality linked to an electric scooter. Two young men who were traveling at just over 30 kilometers per hour, a speed that borders on what is permitted, ran over an elderly woman when they were driving down a street, which ended up costing her her life.