Santa Monica lets Bird and Lime into e-scooter pilot program

Santa Monica has selected Uber-owned Jump, Lyft, Lime and Bird to get permits for its upcoming e-scooter pilot program, with Jump and Lyft also allowed to deploy electric bikes.

The bottom line: Santa Monica's planning department staff previously recommended that only Uber and Lyft receive permits to deploy scooters, but the final choice was made by the department director — possibly influenced by intense lobbying from Lime and Bird, the latter of which is a homegrown company that was originally passed over because of past brash behavior.