Ann Arbor now requires mobile sobriety tests for late night e-scooter riders

Sobriety test required for late e-scooter use in Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor City Council members voted unanimously over the summer to add a layer of protection for the riders and everyone around them.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (FOX 2) - Residents in Ann Arbor may need to take a test on their phone before renting an electric scooter to commute across town. 

Big picture view:

What if you had to take a sobriety test before you went on a bike ride? The city of Ann Arbor is embracing that idea, with a slight twist, and it involves an app on your phone. 

We’re talking about scooters; the city contracts with a company called Spin.

Ann Arbor City Council members voted unanimously over the summer to add a layer of protection for the riders and everyone around them.

What they're saying:

According to a company spokesperson we talked to, the Spin app will require riders to take a reaction-based test on their phone between the hours of 10 p.m. and 4 a.m.

The test involves tapping circles on the screen, like a simple video game. If the rider’s reaction time is too slow, he or she is locked out of the app for six hours.

As far as a timetable goes for the safety feature's rollout, the person FOX 2 spoke with at Spin wasn’t able to give one. 

FOX 2 will update this report when we learn more information.