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The good: a new breed of electric scooter is easy to obtain, via an app, and can be dropped anywhere. The bad: streets are littered with stray scooters and pedestrians are upset. Jefferson Graham reports from Santa Monica
USA TODAY

Ford Motor Co. buys Spin, an electric scooter company, for more than $ 40 million.(Photo: Ford Motor Co.)

Ford Motor is acquiring electric-scooter startup Spin for more than $ 40 million as traditional automakers continue investing in alternative modes of transportation.

This is all about Ford's comprehensive strategy to provide options for customers to buy, lease, taxi and – now – scooter has final mile or two to a destination.

General Motors' announces last week that it would begin selling two electric bikes next year.

Ford, which refers to the Spin Scooters as "micro-mobility" because they provide an average distance of less than 3 miles, is targeting college campuses and urban areas.

In cities including New York and San Francisco, a person can sit in a car for an hour to travel just a few blocks. This is meant to be an antidote to that situation.

The San Francisco-based Spin is currently available in 13 U.S. cities and campuses, including Detroit, Denver, Long Beach and Coral Gables, Ford said.

A Spin scooter costs $ 1 to rent and 15 cents per minute, as is the case with Bird and Lime competitors. The scooters are left in public locations, also like Bird and Lime.

Ford says Spin does not start with local permission, and the company shares with cities.

more: In the Scooter Wars of 2018, it's not really about the scooters

more: General Motors electric unveils bicycles that will arrive in 2019

more: Uber acquires Jump dockless bike-sharing service

"Living in California, I've seen firsthand the electric scooter trend unfold and when I finally got a spin to try them out, I understood why they're so popular," said Sunny Madra, vice president, Ford X. "We are excited to work with the Spin team. The fast-paced, flexible and adaptable customers – and that's what we intend to do. "

Spin aims to be in 100 markets over the next 18 months.

Follow Detroit Free Press reporter Phoebe Wall Howard on Twitter @phoebesaid.

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