Electric scooters – here today, gone tomorrow?

Love them or hate them, they’re back in the news. A vote was held in Paris amidst increasing accidents (some fatal) in the French capital involving electric scooters. There were also complaints of scooters not being docked properly but, instead, dumped on pavements and in parks.

The outcome of the vote? Almost 90% of the voters were in favour of the ban. However, if you look at the statistics, the picture is not quite as straightforward as it may appear. Firstly, the ban only applies to rental scooters. Privately owned scooters were not included in the vote. Presumably, the thought process being that rental scooters were more likely to be ridden dangerously, or dumped in the street, than scooters that were privately owned.

Secondly, whilst almost 90% of those that voted were in favour of the ban, these voters made up less than 10% of eligible voters. In other words, the vast majority of Parisians chose not to vote.

So, what does this mean for the UK? I suspect this is going to be an area of law to keep an eye on. Currently, navigating the legalities of what you can and can’t do is a bit of a minefield. There are numerous things you can and can’t do, for example:

CAN

• Buy, sell or own an e-scooter.
• Ride rental e-scooters on the roads (but only if you fulfil the obligations in that area. For example, some areas of London are taking part in a government trial. Within these areas, you need to pass an online test and have a driving licence in order to hire an e-scooter.)
• Can ride them if you only have a provisional driver’s licence. You do not need to display L-plates.

CAN’T

• Ride privately-owned e-scooters in public places.
• Use them on private land (unless you have the landowner’s permission).
• Ride on public footpaths – you can be fined and incur points on your driver’s licence.
• Ride them in a public space whilst using a mobile phone.
• Ride them if you have an overseas driver’s licence.

The Department for Transport trial on e-scooters, in York (our nearest city taking part, up here in Yorkshire) has been extended. The trial started in November 2020 and was originally planned for 12 months. However, it has been extended to May 2024.

Whilst there may not be as many e-scooters moving around the streets of Paris from September, it looks like they are around to stay in the UK. It’s just a case of ‘watch this space’ to see how the government chooses to regulate them.