Hobart Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds has remained tight-lipped about the future of Beam e-scooters in the city following a closed briefing on the matter.
Reynolds said that “nothing has changed significantly” since the last update, which was that a show cause notice was issued to Beam.
She said the company responded to the notice and City of Hobart chief executive Michael Stretton is now seeking legal advice on whether it was adequate to meet their permit conditions or if further action is necessary.
“We are onto it but the issues that have been raised in other cities do not appear to have occurred here,” Reynolds told Local Radio.
“So if we are going to look at breaking the permit we just need to be absolutely sure that we’re on very solid legal grounds because we don’t want to unnecessarily burden ratepayers with sort of legal costs.”
Pulse understands the former Tasmanian area manager for Beam left the company over the allegations of over-reporting.
In a social media post, the worker claimed Hobart was not impacted.
“This fraud did not occur in ‘my’ cities, but the company has lost its credibility and will probably lose even those cities in which it did behave ethically,” they said.
Several cities across Australian and New Zealand, including Canberra, Brisbane, Townsville, Auckland and Wellington, have already terminated their contracts with Beam.
Stretton said Beam has been asked to engage in good faith while independent investigations continue.
“This process ensures fairness for both Beam and the City of Hobart,” he said.
“The investigations are expected to conclude by the end of September at which point the City will make a final decision on Beam’s permit, considering the findings and legal advice.”
