SEATTLE — As ridership of shared e-scooters and bikes has exploded in Seattle in recent years, and with the FIFA World Cup coming to Seattle, the city is preparing in multiple ways to manage safety as more riders are expected during the international games.
According to Seattle Department of Transportation data for scooter and bike share usage within the city, ridership more than doubled from 5.1 million rides in 2023 to 10.5 million in 2025. So far in 2026, the same data shows more than 26,800 rides per day within the city.
Meanwhile, in the years preceding the ridership boom, a 2024 Washington Traffic Safety Commission report found e-scooter-related incidents in Seattle increased from just nine between 2018 and 2020 to 273 between 2021 and 2023.
It's a trend local businesses have noticed in downtown Seattle.
“The only thing that does suck about the scooters is you do have pedestrian safety concerns, where hopefully people aren't driving them wildly or crashing into people,†said Crystal Hernandez, general manager of Darkalino's in Pioneer Square. “People in Seattle have gotten hurt, and I've fallen off of them,†she added.
Others, like Masha Maykova, who works along the Seattle waterfront, said waves of people using shared e-vehicles can be overwhelming, particularly after sporting events or concerts.
“It's especially bad when they're leaving or coming back to their cars. You see so many e-bikes go by, and all these people — they've definitely had one or two drinks — and they're just swerving all over the roads,†Maykova said. “I've had it before where I was walking home from a concert one time, and I almost got hit by an e-bike.â€
Now, ahead of six FIFA World Cup matches coming to Seattle from June through July, the city of Seattle and Lime — the primary supplier of shared e-scooters and e-bikes in the city — are preparing for the influx of roughly 750,000 people expected in the Puget Sound region for the games and their potential use of shared e-vehicles.
SDOT said it has already instituted a policy slowing rented e-scooters and e-bikes to 8 mph inside the Pioneer Square Game Day Pedestrian Zone.
The department has also installed and labeled 200 bike and scooter corrals around the city, including designated areas within the Game Day Pedestrian Zone.
“I 100% agree with that because not only does it get so crowded in this area, but people could crash into others because everyone is leaving at the same time,†Maykova said. “Even if they are still crashing into people, it's a lot less likely to cause damage because it's half the speed they would normally be going.â€
The city also said it is requiring permits for bike- and scooter-share companies to use new technology that detects when someone on a scooter is skidding, jumping, or riding recklessly on a sidewalk.
SDOT said bike- and scooter-share companies must incorporate the technology as soon as possible, including deployment on at least half of the standing scooter fleet by the second quarter of 2026 and on all devices by the end of 2026.
Those like Hernandez, who hope to capitalize on increased business in Pioneer Square during the World Cup, said they just want people to stay safe and be mindful not only in the stadium area, but throughout the city.
“Hopefully, people just use their common sense in riding these,†she said.
Parker Dawson, senior regional lead of government relations for Lime, wrote in a statement to KOMO News:
We have been working on a comprehensive operations plan to support the city's transportation network during this summer's International Soccer matches celebrations, with all aspects including fleet size, geofencing and special zones developed closely in partnership with SDOT.
Lime is excited to provide emissions-free transportation options to residents and visitors in Seattle this summer as folks make their way to matches and celebrations.
We’ll look forward to sharing more soon as we get closer to Seattle’s first match.
Lime added that “safety is foundational to our service at Lime and critical to our role in Seattle, where residents and visitors take millions of Lime rides each year.â€
The company said more than 99.99% of Lime trips globally ended without a reported incident in 2025.
