SANTA MONICA, Calif. (KABC) -- Protesters showed up in Santa Monica with dozens of them riding scooters to send a message to City Hall - they like what they have now.
The one-day shutdown comes after the city's planning department released its recommendations for a test program of the scooters. It selected Lyft and Uber-owned Jump as the top two applicants over Lime and Bird.
The demonstrators chanted and urged city leaders to give Lime and Bird priority over the other two. They said while the scooters are often left behind on sidewalks and even behind cars, it's a user issue.
Bird reps said they were going to put less scooters on the road to show the city that it's serious about working with them.
"It's shocking to me that they're selecting two companies to have a monopoly over the business in Santa Monica, and these are companies that have no history in the scooter business," said Geri Palumbo, a Lime supporter.
The issue was not on the city council's agenda Tuesday night, but people went to the meeting regardless to speak during public comment.
The city is expected to pick two companies for the program on Aug. 30. They urged anyone who wants to share in the discussion to email city representatives.