Bird scooters located at the corner of 32nd Street South and Clairmont Avenue in the Forest Park area of Birmingham. (Erin Edgemon/eedgemon@al.com)

The Homewood City Council on Monday placed a 60-day moratorium on Bird electric scooters operating in the city.

"We are going to stay open minded on this," Council President Bruce Limbaugh said. "We'll look at options and possibilities."

He said the city council wants to hear if residents want the scooters to operate in the city, and how they should be regulated.

City Attorney Mike Kendrick said regulations need to be put in place before Bird can offer scooters for rent in Homewood.

The city council's action comes days after Homewood impounded about 38 scooters that were illegally placed on city sidewalks on Aug. 28. Bird was also issued a citation for doing business without a city license. Fines and court costs totaled $371.

Council members criticized Bird for launching in the city on Aug. 28 without seeking the proper permits and business license.

"It was a bit of a shock to be driving to work and suddenly have scooters cluttering our sidewalks," Councilwoman Barry Smith said. She said she saw several children riding the scooters, even though the legal age is 18.

Councilman Peter Wright said Bird launching without a license was "incredibly unprofessional. You can't just be flippant about it," he added.

"You are putting danger in people's hands, and you come back and say, 'well, we forgot to get a business license,'" Wright said.

Servando Esparza, senior manager of governmental relations for Bird in the Southeast, said Bird launched in Birmingham and Homewood as part of its university pop-up tour to engage interest in college towns and college students.

"We were encouraged by the high level of interest in Homewood," he said, adding that Bird has applied for a business license. He said Bird wants to work with the city.

Esparza said Bird offers free helmets to riders, and riders can request them through the Bird app. Helmets requested are shipped to riders for $1.99, which is the cost of shipping.

Birmingham began impounding Bird scooters on Monday afternoon and by 5 p.m., Birmingham police had impounded 41 scooters.

Birmingham City Councilor Darrell O'Quinn, who chairs the council's transportation committee, said his office is working to draft legislation to regulate electric scooters and other small vehicles.

Bird has applied for a business license in the Magic City too, and the company held an initial meeting with the city of Birmingham on Monday.

How Bird works:

Bird scooters can be rented through its smart phone app, according to Bird. The app allows users to locate and unlock a scooter. The app also shares safety tips for riders.

A ride costs an initial $1 plus a charge of 15 cents per minute. Bird scooters are calibrated to run at a maximum speed of 15 miles per hour. A charge lasts for about 15 miles.

Each night a Bird contractor, called a charger, picks up the scooters and takes them home to be charged. The scooters are placed back in their "nests," a pre-approved spot, by 7 a.m. the next morning.

According to Bird, the company works to make sure users are riding safely by: