You can now rent a Lime bike and leave it virtually anywhere in St. Paul — just as you can with a Lime scooter.

The Silicon Valley-based bike-share company launched a fleet of dockless bicycles in St. Paul on Tuesday, just in time for the primary elections. Lime signed a contract with the city on Monday to provide bikes that can be leased through a smartphone app and then left on their kickstand — no bike racks or docking stations are necessary.

“Lime will provide both traditional pedal bikes, and, eventually, electric-assist bikes which can help make traveling up some of St. Paul’s many hills a bit easier,” reads a statement from St. Paul Public Works.

Rates for dockless bikes start at $1 per half-hour, but Lime has committed to working with the city on pricing options for low-income users, and on making rentals available for users who do not have smartphones or credit cards.

In addition to dockless bikes, Lime rolled 150 dockless e-scooters into the capital city a week ago.

For St. Paul, dockless bikes, electric-assist bikes and electric scooters are a new entry in the “micro-mobility” market, but the devices have become ubiquitous in some coastal cities and in parts of Asia.

They’re sometimes marketed as a way to complete the “last mile” between public transit stops and a rider’s destination, but some cities have complained that e-scooters in particular hog urban sidewalks and beach boardwalks.

The St. Paul City Council recently created regulations for an e-scooter pilot program that runs from Aug. 1 until Nov. 30.

When contacted during business hours, e-scooter companies have two hours to remove the scooters from prohibited areas, such as driveways and transit stops.

Riders are expected to follow the road rules that apply to bicycle users, and all riders are encouraged to wear helmets. Scooters can be used on city streets, bike lanes and bike paths, but are prohibited on sidewalks. Related Articles Sept. 30 is last day for public comment on Pigs Eye Lake makeover

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With the regulations in place, Bird Rides Inc. — which removed its e-scooters at the city’s request earlier this summer — has also submitted permitting paperwork and plans to return to the capital city. Bird and Lime both offer e-scooters in Minneapolis.

Dockless bike-sharing in Minneapolis is being provided by Nice Ride Motivate Minnesota, a partnership between Nice Rice and Motivate, a subsidiary of Lyft.