Beam Mobility is one of two e-scooter providers in the ACT. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
One of the providers of Canberra’s legion of e-scooters is facing scrutiny by the ACT Government over alleged “unethical behaviour”.
A furor began last weekend when The Australian accused Beam Mobility, behind the ACT’s purple e-scooters, of using “phantom” scooters to avoid paying government fees.
When contacted for comment, an ACT Government spokesperson said the government had received information alleging “unethical behaviour” by one of its public shared e-scooter providers earlier this month.
“The ACT Government is currently investigating these claims and liaising with other councils and the operator,” the spokesperson said.
“We have no further comment to make as the matter is still under investigation.
“We take allegations of unethical behaviour very seriously.”
When Region reached out to Beam, CEO Alan Jiang responded with a statement in which he said his company took its responsibilities regarding fleet deployment and its obligations to councils seriously.
He said Beam undertook a program to optimise the number of operational vehicles available to the public in some jurisdictions.
“As a result of this approach, we are aware there have been instances where we have exceeded the vehicle allocation,” Mr Jiang said.
“For any breaches in the caps, we have apologised and intend to take steps to remedy.
“We have since committed to a full and thorough revision of our processes to ensure this does not happen again. We will work closely with our council partners on an appropriate response.”
He outlined a number of steps Beam had taken “to address the shortcomings”, including an internal review.
“Our aim is to ensure that we have identified and addressed all of the issues – both operational and technical – that are behind any instances of exceeding the vehicle allocation.”
Mr Jiang said an independent auditor would be appointed to conduct a full review of Beam’s operations with the aim to deliver a preliminary report by the end of September. The full report may be made public.
“We are prepared to negotiate a commercial settlement with any councils affected for any issues around non-compliance of our licence,” he said.
E-scooters, belonging to Neuron (left) and Beam, have become a common sight in Canberra. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
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