Lime hits 1-million rides in Kelowna, but how many more will there be?

Lime is celebrating an exciting milestone, but it comes amid an uncertain future in the Central Okanagan.

The company has announced that it will hit one-million rides in Kelowna over the next few days, just over three years after Lime launched in Kelowna in April 2021.

However, despite growing ridership year-over-year, the future of Lime in Kelowna is very much in doubt as the City explores other operators for its micro-mobility program.

A three-year pilot partnership between the City of Kelowna and Lime expired in April, but no permanent deal followed.

Instead, the City promised to do its due diligence, opening up a “competitive selection process” to weigh its options before picking a permanent operator moving forward.

That process is ongoing, which led to an extension of the current contract with Lime through July, and Lime is reportedly still in the running to be the operator moving forward.

Despite the question marks about the company’s future in Kelowna, it’s business for usual for Lime as the company’s full fleet is now out for use throughout the city.

“This year we’ve focused especially on safe riding and proper parking and we’re proud to say that complaints have already decreased significantly even while ridership continues to boom,” said Sonia Kandola, director of government relations for Lime.

“We look forward to continuing to serve Kelowna and contribute to its transportation network in a safe, affordable and sustainable way.”

Kandola notes the company is “blown away” by the constantly-growing ridership they’ve seen in Kelowna and the one-million ride milestone is a testament to residents’ and tourists’ love for the two-wheeled transit option.

To celebrate the milestone, Lime will hold a safety-themed event downtown in May where it will give out helmets, swag and discount codes, but a date for the event has not yet been set.

And in the meantime, the company says it will continue to make adjustments to its service, citing things like parking and safety, to make things as smooth as possible for riders.