Is Bird’s Cruiser electric moped finally going to see the light of day soon? Signs point to “yes”, as clues in the company’s Android application reveal more details than we’ve ever seen before.
You’d be forgiven for forgetting that Bird’s Cruiser electric moped was even a thing.
The company announced the project earlier this summer and showed off a few renderings for a big PR splash.
But ever since it has been radio silence from the electric scooter sharing company.
The last time I tried to weasel something – anything – from Bird about the Cruiser electric moped project, a representative from the company’s Corporate Communications department gave me the super helpful answer, “No new news at the moment.”
So instead we’ve had to turn to amateur Twitter sleuth Alec Garcia, who dug up some interesting information from the bowels of the latest Bird application update on the Android platform.
He found a tutorial video demonstrating the proper way to operate the upcoming Bird Cruiser electric moped. And it shows more detail than we’ve ever seen before.
From the materials we can glean some new tidbits.
It looks like all Bird Cruisers will come with helmets supplied in a locking storage box on the rear of the bench seat. While we originally speculated that the Bird Cruiser could be a great option for transporting two people, it’s hard to imagine how two helmets will fit in that small cargo box – or how much room the box leaves for a passenger.
The new materials also show us that Bird intends for riders to treat the Cruisers more like sit down scooters than e-bikes or typical Bird scooters. That means riding in the road instead of the bike lane, as well as parking in on-street parking instead of on the sidewalk.
The app instructs Bird Cruiser riders accordingly:
“Stay alert and ride in the streets. Navigate traffic carefully and anticipate what others may do.”
When it comes to parking, it looks like the Bird Cruiser electric mopeds will come with a double center stand instead of a typical side stand, which should help keep the bikes upright. That might help stem criticism that has plagued Bird’s electric scooters regarding their tendency to wind up on their sides and blocking bike lanes or sidewalks.
While we don’t have a definitive release date for the Bird Cruisers yet, the update to the app seems to indicate that they are on their way. It has also been reported that the recently unveiled Juiced Scorpion electric moped was produced in a partnership with Bird, and thus could indicated that production of the Bird Cruiser is close – or perhaps has even already begun.