OjO, a light electric vehicle company, announced Jan. 8 the launch of its electric scooter rideshare service in Austin, Texas, in partnership with Austin Commuter Scooter, a subsidiary of Bike Share of Austin, which operates the city's B-cycle system. Unlike other scooter services available in Austin, OjO vehicles are equipped with a seat and designed for commuters. They also feature speakers, which allow for audible navigation alerts. Fully charged, the scooters can ride up to 50 miles. As with other dockless mobility companies operating in Austin, OjO handles charging and replacing batteries. In conjunction with the city of Austin's regulations for dockless mobility companies, OjO vehicles can reach a maximum speed of 20 miles per hour; the company will also share data on scooter usage and ride trends with the city to help improve rules and efforts to improve safety. "OjO is committed to collaborating with local governments to protect the public's right-of-way while providing first and last mile mobility solutions," the company said in a Jan. 8 news release. The company has been approved for 100 permits, according to the Austin Transportation Department. Austin Commuter Scooter will provide operational support to OjO, with local deployment, service, repair and customer support. "We think it says a lot of about Austin that OjO would decided to make this its first launch market," said Elliott McFadden, executive director of Bike Share of Austin, in the same news release. The city began offering permits to dockless mobility companies in May, after Lime and Bird launched in the city in April without prior approval. Today, seven companies have acquired more than 16,000 permits for dockless mobility vehicles in Central Austin, according to ATD.