I don't know what's wrong with some people but apparently "drive it like you stole it" also applies to "rented it". Based on how a lot of those bikes look—and this is while Lime is actively maintaining and culling the fleet and—it seems many users end their ride by leaping off the bikes in mid sprint and letting it crash into whatever, sometimes punctuated with an angry kick or maybe smearing a little dirt and food into the seat and basket.
It's completely careless use that raises the ecological and economic price of these ride shares. If people were less shitty, they'd be way better in every respect.
“The average vehicle went 163.2 miles over 92 trips during its lifetime”
https://www.theinformation.com/articles/hit-by-big-loss-bird...
They lost $100 million on 40 million in revenue.
[1]https://qz.com/1561654/how-long-does-a-scooter-last-less-tha...
That's why you spend billions of dollars of VC money.
One Chinese bike rental company lost its entire fleet in about a week, 10,000 bikes lost in less than 10 days.
More broadly, this is how capitalism works. Capital is allocated relatively efficiently but there is a lot of failure and waste inherent in the competitive process.
A moped typically lasts 10,000-100,000 miles, so even though it's much heavier, the energy and cost are amortized over a far longer period.