Unbelievable but true: Paris decided to say goodbye to rental electric scooters. The city, once a pioneer in welcoming these means of transport, is preparing to become the only major European capital to ban them. But from the clues it could simply be the first of a long series.
The referendum called by the mayor Anne Hidalgo he saw almost 90% of voters stand against scooters. Arnaud Kielbasa, co-founder of the Apacauvi association, which represents victims of accidents caused by scooters, couldn't be happier.
Fear and the difficulty of integration wins
Paris residents have expressed concerns about safety on both streets and sidewalks due to electric scooters. It is not difficult to imagine the relief of those who, like Arnaud, had to suffer the tragedy of seeing their family involved in an accident with one of these vehicles. Mayor Hidalgo had initially welcomed scooters with open arms in 2018, but over time she has tightened the regulations' shirts more and more. Dedicated parking lots, speed limits and restrictions on the number of operators were introduced, but it was not enough to reassure citizens.
The problem, apparently, concerns not only reckless driving, but also the obstruction of the sidewalks. The ease of use and diffusion of electric scooters has also led to several fatal accidents which have highlighted the risks associated with the use of these vehicles by children as young as 12 years old. The increase of Veil plan will definitely focus on bicycles.
Electric scooters: gravestone for their future?
Perhaps our road systems are still too “car” centric, and our cities are not capable of incorporating a means of transportation with the characteristics of electric scooters. Or perhaps, electric scooters themselves have problems that need to be reviewed to become a stable vehicle. The fact is that at least on the rental level, starting from August 31st Paris will tear up the contract with the current three operators: Lime, Dott and Tier.
And on a private level? The situation is different there. If on the one hand there is concern, on the other there is also a strong desire for alternative mobility: for this reason, as many as 2022 electric scooters were purchased in France in 700.000 alone.
There are those who think that this is a swan song, and soon the bans will also hit larger cities (London, Rome, New York). Others, however, think the exact opposite. Are we sure that there is no regulation or way to work on these means of transport?
